


Steps

by kendraleaanne



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: BAMF Lucy Heartfilia, Bickslow Backstory, Celestial dragon slayer, Cool Dragon Shit, F/M, Fairy Tail Dragon Slayers, Gonna be wild ride y'all, Laxus/Bickslow Bromance, Laxus/Lucy-Brother/Sister Vibes, Mates, Mostly Outside of Fiore, Pradesh Background, Pradeshverse, Some seriously cool OC's
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-25
Updated: 2019-01-04
Packaged: 2019-03-09 12:06:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 136,128
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13481157
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kendraleaanne/pseuds/kendraleaanne
Summary: One night of Truth or Dare with guild's resident drunk will lead Lucy to face a longtime crush she had been forbidden from pursuing by her overprotective big brother and the leader of Bickslow's own team. Multi-Chappie, Eventual Smut, Very Slow-burn.





	1. Step One: Borrow the Babies

The Celestial Mage should have known better than to play Truth or Dare with the resident drunk and Card Mage of Fairy Tail. It had been a particularly boring day for her; Gray had finally agreed to go on a mission with Juvia alone, Wendy and Carla had joined Erza on an important request from the Magic Council, Natsu and Happy were on a three week long job with the youngest Strauss sibling which left Lucy understandably without plans for the foreseeable future. She didn't need to go on any jobs herself having the good sense to use half the reward from her S-Class job she and Erza went on to pay her rent forward for the next few months and still had plenty leftover for food and frivolous shopping she was desperately in need of. So in a tipsy lapse of judgement, the blonde had been roped into the game, much to the joy of her brunette friend.

It was around seven from the level of rowdiness of the guild on a pleasant Spring evening. Being a Friday night, things were just beginning to get started for her nakama. Mira had the lights dimmed just right, the music was loud enough to get lost in but not so loud as to warrant having to yell to have conversation and she kept booze pouring from her deft hands with practiced ease.

Holding a tequila shot in one hand, lime in the other with a hearty dose of salt on the back of her hand, Lucy licked the salt, knocked back the amber liquid and quickly sucked the lime between her lips before slamming the glass on the bartop and turning to Cana, "Okay, that was cheap even for you. You know I can't tell you about what happened between Erza and Jellal on our last job. Nothing is worse than Titania's wrath, not one tequila shot, not ten tequila shots, not whatever else you could think of."

The bikini-top clad woman just laughed at her whiny words, "All right, you're up my little Peach, and I take dare," she added a saucy wink before taking a deep swig from her mug.

Lucy let out a carefree laugh at her sassy companion, "I thought the point of this was to drink when you failed a dare or couldn't tell the truth, Cana."

"It's not far, I never back out of a dare and I like my beer to stay fresh and ice cold, now quit side stepping and give me a good one."

Taking a glance around the guild hall, her honey eyes landed on a few of Magnolia's brave who decided to see if they could party with the big boys on the dance floor, and Lucy planned on testing their limits with the irresistible charisma of the guilds most notorious partier. Jackpot. She smiled wickedly at the drunkard, "Okay, Cana love, I dare you to get those civvies to dance with you...all three of them...at the same time."

Chugging the rest of her beer, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand and straightening her top to push her boobs higher, she smiled deviously at the blonde. She shivered as the brunette trailed her hand across the exposed skin of her shoulder, "Piece of cake, Lulu. Try to spend the short time I'll be away thinking of an actual challenge for me for next time."

The little blonde leaned her elbows on the bar behind her, watching the confident Card Mage saunter over to the table that held her unsuspecting victims. She could tell the brunette was laying it on thick as she giggled and traced over their chests coyly while bent over the table to give the men a good healthy look at her generous chest.

Before long, Lucy was finished with her third strawberry daiquiri and Cana was sandwiched between three bodies, grinding away in the center of the dance floor. Shaking her head, Lucy caught Mira's attention and waved the silver haired beauty over, feeling a very pleasant buzz take over her body, she wiggled a finger to get the demoness to lean in closer, "Pssst, hey, Mira, I bet Lisanna and Natsu are gettin' it on wherever the hell they are right now. I feel a little bad for the poor girl, Natsu completely oblivious when in comes to anything romantic or sexy. I'm sure she really had to work for it."

This line of thought had Mira's sapphire eyes shining mischievously before she told Kinana she was taking a break for a few minutes and turning back to the giggling blonde biting into the strawberry that garnished the rim of her fruity drink.

The Takeover Mage's voice was light as she smiled fondly at the mage she came to see as another little sister, "Were you waiting for Cana to return before ordering another because it looks like you'll be waiting awhile..."

Her words were interrupted when the Card Mage in question plopped onto the stool next to Lucy, breathless and ready for another drink. She ordered another round of her beloved tequila shots for the three of them before sliding one in front of the giggly summoner mage, "All right ladies, we are gonna take this shot like the champs we are and then Lulu here is going to pick dare for the first time tonight and things are going to get really interesting," shooting the blonde a sly look from the corner of her eye, "Unless you're too chicken, Lulu."

Having just the right balance of alcohol and competitive drive, her voice grew determined, "You're on, Seer. Do your worst."

The barmaid let out an 'Oh no' before Cana's face broke into a victorious, cat-that-ate-the-canary grin, as she downed her shot sans salt and lime and waited with easy patience as her two guild mates set themselves up and took their shot; salt, tequila, lime.

While Lucy easily downed her booze, Mira blinked at the burn in the back of her throat, her voice raspy, "It was nice knowing you Lu-chan. We will really miss you around the guild. You really brightened the place up."

The brunette perched at the bar to Lucy's right let out a howling cackle at her long-time friends words before turning to look into ready, darkened honey orbs, "I dare you to..." pointing up the the second floor balcony, "get Bickslow to let you have his babies for the night. If you don't, I get a key to your apartment and free reign over your impressive lingerie collection, you dirty little slut you."

Lucy visibly shuddered at the thought of the nosy mage being able to come and go from her apartment, stealing her underwear to do Mavis knows what in. She squared her shoulders, adjusted her deep blue corseted top and turned to face the steps leading to where the Seith Mage was drinking with Laxus and Freed. Her voice was like ice as she quickly hissed at the evil brunette, "I'm never leaving you alone in my bedroom ever again you good for nothing snoop and when I come back down, adorable totems in tow, you have to get up on that stage and dedicate a painfully slow, ridiculously sweet love song to our guild's resident party planner and Sand Mage."

Narrowing her deep plum colored eyes, "Deal, my little Lulu. I can't wait sleep off all my hangovers in the sweet pink embrace of your comfy suede couch."

Rolling her shoulders and fluffing her long golden curls that fell around her wide hips, she made the long trek up the stairs to lean a hand on the table that held the men of the Thunder God Tribe. Tilting her head to the side, she smiled a sinful, flirty smile at the Seith Mage before dropping her voice like smooth silk pointing the empty space on the bench next to him, "Do you mind if I take this seat?"

He was wearing his usual knightly getup, his visor firmly affixed in place much to Lucy's chagrin, before his voice, deep and throaty, answered her blatant flirting, "Not at all, Cosplayer. If you're lookin' to take up the best seat in the house, my laps always open to you," tongue lolling from his mouth.

She was silently thanking the liquid courage coursing through her veins as she smoothly shot back while taking up the space next to the towering mage, "I'll be sure to keep that in mind for next time," running a hand over the black fabric of his sleeve, which was surprisingly soft under her fingertips.

Taking a long pull from his mug, he looked down at the minxy blonde from behind the slitted protection of his visor, "What brings a pretty thing like you up into the slums of the balcony?"

Her voice was incredulous as she turned to better face him, "'Slums'? This is the S-Class lounge, what delusional world are you living in, Good Sir-Knight?"

Laxus let a hearty, chest rumbling laugh at the spunky blonde across from him, "So what brings you to the S-Class lounge then, Blondie?"

Giving the Lightning Mage a pointed look, "You're blonde too, you idiot. And I ventured up here to see what all the hype is about. Seems pretty mundane...although I do admit, you have a much better view up here," looking back over at the Seith Mage from under her long lashes.

"Cute, but I happen to know you've been hangin' with the drunkard this evening and that means you came up here for a reason, Blondie."

Narrowing her honeyed orbs at the Dragon Slayer, she conceded, "Fine, I came up here for a reason, but I have been curious about what it's like to look down at the guild from an asshole's perspective to see what makes you so high and mighty you can't mingle with the rest of us commoners." Shrugging her creamy shoulder, her words were flippant as she leaned on her elbows over the table, giving the older mage a very nice view of her barely contained mounds, "And I have to admit, I don't get the appeal, Laxus," she quipped as she took his half-full mug and downed the rest of the hulking mage's beer. Shaking her head as if to clear her head, she poked the Seith Mage's chest before easily adding, "Now I'm rocking a pretty intense buzz and I'm in need of something only you can provide, Bickslow."

He quickly looked between the open gawk of the Rune Mage next to Laxus, the impressed glint in his boss's steely gaze and the smirk that twisted the pretty pink lips of the Celestial Mage leaning far too close for comfort. He swallowed in hopes of sending some relief to the desert that took up residence in his mouth, "And what's that, Kitten?"

She bit her bottom lip before her sweet voice fell from her slightly swollen pink pout, "What would it take for you to let me borrow your babies for the night?"

"My...babies? You want me to...give you my babies," his words were more suspicious than she'd have hoped but she could work with just about anything save outright rejection and even that, she was willing fight over. The Card Mage was not getting free access to her apartment.

Quickly jumping at the Seith Mages drop in guard, she corrected, "Only borrow for the night, and I promise it'll be worth it. You name whatever your price to let me have your babies follow me down to the bar and hang around until Cana passes out and then they're all yours again and I'll pay whatever fee you've deemed necessary. My sanity and my underwear are on the line here and I'm just not willing to give either up."

Devilish grin spread across his face, which made Lucy squirm a bit, she didn't know if it was out of fear or to ease the ache between her thighs, before his voice turned scheming and she knew she had tread into dangerous waters, "Anything I want, Cosplayer?"

Rolling her eyes at his suggestive undertone, "Mavis I hope I don't regret this but, yes." Taking a deep breath, "Anything you want."

He paused for minute, bringing his hand to rest thoughtfully on his chin before shooting her a smirk, "A date then."

That was about the last thing she had been expecting to come out of his drop-dead sexy mouth, "You want-...You and I-...A-a date?"

Wrapping his hand around the edge of the bench on the other side of the stuttering mage, effectively caging her with his body, he drawled casually, "That's my price, Kitten."

"Huh. I was kind of expecting something more nefarious and involving some level of nudity or like, ridiculous costume or something."

"I can always change my mind if you want..."

Holding her hands up in panic,"NO!" Clearing her throat as she smoothed the grinning mages jacket, "No, a date is good, a date is perfect. When do you want...to go out?," she asked with hesitation. She'd had just the slightest, smallest inkling of a crush on the Seith Mage and she really wasn't too keen on being a notch in the infamous playboy's bedpost.

"I'll pick you up tomorrow here at five. Take good care of my babies, I'll know if you don't."

The five totems twirled their way from the neat stack they had been in on the other side of Bickslow. He didn't miss the way her golden eyes lit up when they floated around her, his smallest soul trying his best to impress the pretty blonde as she spoke without taking her eyes from them, "What are their names?"

He chuckled at her open admiration of his souls, each totem gave a little spin as he did a quick roll call, "The biggest is Papa, the one next to him is Mama, the one over your head is Momo, that's Mimi and the little guy who thinks you're pretty is Muu." He put the back of his hand to the corner of lips to whisper the Celestial Mage, "He's a little schmooze with a soft spot for blondes with killer curves."

He had to suppress the shiver than threatened to give up his confident facade as he felt the warmth of her breath from her whispered words through his hood, "Hopefully he's not the only one." Before the curves of her barely covered ass ran up his arm as she got up, speaking excitedly to the totems floating around her, "Come on, cuties, I've got a nosy drunk to knock down a few pegs. You're gonna love the show she's about to put on."

Bickslow didn't tear his gaze from the little blonde until Laxus was laughing openly at him, the slayer's baritone intruding on his time staring after the hypnotic woman, "I'll be damned, Bix. You look like you're in love."

Rubbing a hand over his mouth, his voice came out a little too serious for his liking, "I think I am, dude."

XxX

Her confidence was through the roof as she wove her way back to the bar where the brunette mage was nursing another mug of beer. She leaned over the bar, her ample chest on the cusp of spilling over the wooden top before ordering herself a glass of water and turning to the gaping woman and musing out loud, "I was thinking maybe a little 'I'll make love to you' or maybe 'I will always love you' for your stage debut, Cana-chan."

When the drunk finally found her voice again, she could only manage to get out one word, "How?!"

Taking sips of her water, Lucy rubbed her nose against the smooth wood of the littlest totem, Muu as she answered easily, "I asked him."

Shaking her head at the blonde, "Oh no, that's not all you did. Bickslow wouldn't give up his babies to just anyone, that's kind of the reason I dared you to get them. I really wanted a key to your apartment. It's way closer to downtown than mine is."

She held her hand out for the smiling totem, Mimi, to land on, before she cracked, "Okay, so I have to go on a date with him but, I don't know, seems like it'll be a blast anyway so it really wasn't a hard decision. Now get your ass up on that stage and sing your heart out to our poor, unassuming Max."

In Lucy's victorious reveling, she completely missed the demon barmaids heart-filled eyes from across the bar.

The brunette once again chugged the contents of her mug, wiped her mouth, and winked at the blonde, "I think I'm about to get lucky thanks to you, Lulu. I'll have to thank you tomorrow when we emerge from the love dungeon."

She chuckled at the Card Mages words, "Mavis, that is so gross. I don't want to know a damn thing. I need to be able to look at the Sand Mage still, I happen to like helping him plan the parties we throw."

The easy-going brunette made her way to the stage before grabbing a mic and dedicating the next song to Max Alors. Lucy had to admit, she was impressed at her friends boldness as the beginnings of 'Let's Talk About Sex' played over the speakers and when her conniving drunkard of a friend called her out to join her on stage, she just laughed and made her way to the elevated wooden floor, Cana reaching a hand down to help her up. The curvy blonde had enough alcohol in her system to not give any fucks as she sang the all the choruses and Cana rapped all the verses, Bickslow's babies acting as little background dancers, twisting and flipping to the beat.

After the song was over, the summoner shook her head as the Card Mage made a beeline for the deeply blushing Sand Mage and very conspicuously, left arm in arm with the dirty blonde man. Turning to the little wooden babies floating around her, she moved to cup each of them as her voice dipped with sadness, "I guess this means I'll have to give you up already, even though you guys are absolutely adorable." The tiny totem, Muu, made his way to nuzzle into her chest. She instantaneously wrapped her arms around his wooden body, "I just don't want to give you back. Maybe we can run away together. What do ya say, Cutie Pie? Me and you against the world?"

She laughed as the little guy broke free from her arms and rubbed against her cheek, bringing her hand to cup the flirty totem, "Let's go break the news to Bickslow then, Muu."

When she finally made her way back up the steps to the balcony, Freed and Laxus had vacated the premise, leaving a very lonely looking Seith Mage to his fresh mug of beer. Saddling up next to him, her voice was dreamy as she gave Muu little Eskimo kisses, "Muu and I are running away together. I thought I should let you know before you never see either of us ever again."

If Bickslow ever took off his visor, she'd have seen the faraway look in his deep red eyes, but he didn't take it off and she didn't see the awe that danced at the back of his orbs. Instead, she was greeted with his usual playful tone, "Is that so, Cosplayer?" Turning to face the little woman who was petting the top of Momo affectionately, "Are you all going to abandon me or is Muu the only traitor amongst you lot?"

He laughed as all his totems save Papa, chirped and vibrated as they dipped and tumbled around the golden haired mages head. She was cooing back at them sweetly before the smile she hit him with was too radiant and all but took the breath right out of his lungs. She completely blew the Seith Mage away with one beaming split of her lips.

She squeezed his hand so quickly, he almost thought he was dreaming before her head tilted to the side like she did when she first approached him that night, "I'll see you tomorrow then, Bickslow. Have a good night...and Bix?"

"Yeah?"

"Take good care of my babies, I'll know if you don't," her sweet melodic laughter lingered with the Seith Mage long after she'd said her goodbyes to their guild mates.

He couldn't help but laugh as he turned to Papa, "Her babies? and here I was under impression you were mine." He made quick work of his walk home before stripping down and falling asleep. Genuinely excited to wake up the next day for what seemed like ages.


	2. Step Two: Walk Through the Door

Lucy couldn't remember the last time she had actually gotten nervous before a date. Or at least nervous enough to go through every outfit she owned and was still left unsatisfied and standing in the middle of her bedroom in her sexiest set of deep blue lacy lingerie she owned, black thigh high stockings being held in place by her perfectly tailored garter set. As a woman with an exceptional closet, it was endlessly frustrating to not want to wear absolutely anything, smirking as she thought, I know Bickslow wouldn't mind if I showed up wearing nothing but my pretty lingerie but I'm sure the rest of the guild doesn't need to see it.

Letting out an indignant huff, she summoned Virgo to help her sort through the could be outfits.

The moment the Maiden spirit was in front of the blonde, she bowed, "Punishment Princess?"

Sighing as she leaned forward from where she had thrown herself on the edge of her pink bed, "No Virgo, I need help getting ready for a date and I have nothing to wear."

Eyeing the tornado of random clothes strewn across her mistresses apartment, the spirit spoke slow and deliberate, "I...see, Princess. Perhaps I could whip you up something special for your suitor. Who, may I ask, is the lucky man that has you so nervous?"

"Bickslow, the Seith Mage in my guild. We kind of had an agreement-"

Her ginger haired Lion spirit came through his gate of his on accord at the mention of his princess going on a date with the guilds resident pervert and playboy, "Oh no, absolutely not. That...that man is not worthy of a date from you. Absolutely not a chance in hell will I allow that cretin to have even a chance the moves on you. I do not trust him."

"Okay first off, no. Just no. You don't have the right to come here and go all overprotective bullshitty dad-cat on me when you, YOU, were and still are a more notorious playboy and if I say so myself, you may even rival Bickslow, his name is Bickslow, for guild pervert you flirty baka." Poking the chest of the spirit's finely tailored suit before her voice dropped to dangerous threatening levels, "and second off, fuck. you. I am a grown woman. And even if you had the authority to forbid anything I do, which by the way, you don't, I agreed to this in exchange for letting me borrow his babies last night. I made a deal and gave him my word. You know what that means, don't you, Loke."

Straightening his suit jacket, he turned his head to look down at the feisty blonde, voice even, "It means you cannot break the vow or you lose your contracts, Princess."

"Exactly, so like, either you stay here and help me pick an outfit of you go home and brood like a wet blanket but for the record, I could really use the opinion of a man who had impeccable taste like yours," dropping all the heat from her previous words, she genuinely felt like another opinion, a man's opinion would be helpful to fixing her current dilemma.

Without letting her spirit respond, she pushed him to take the spot she had just abandoned on her bed before speaking seriously, hand cradling her chin, "So I'm thinking I want something sexy, slinky maybe but not too much because I don't actually want to be dressed like a whore. I am not some floozy like he's taken out before. He will be reminded of that when he sees me in my very attractive yet appropriate date night outfit."

Her pinkette started pulling shirts and dresses from the piles carelessly tossed away in rejection before turning back to the leader of the Zodiac and Lucy, "May I suggest something casual yet sultry and we can see how it fares between your critical eyes?"

Nodding brusquely at his fellow Zodiac spirit before watching her disappear and putting a hand on the bare waist of the scantily clad blonde, voice husky in her ear, "I could always come with you, Princess. You wouldn't be breaking your vow and I could show the Seith Mage how to treat a lady properly."

Rolling her deep chocolate eyes as walked to her vanity to play with her long golden waves, gathering them messily in a low bun before playfully adding, "Oh, my fearless lion, I don't think I want Bickslow to learn anything you would have to teach him. I kind of want this date go well and I'm too keen on having a one-night stand with anyone from the guild."

Pressing his hand to his heart in mock-offense, "My Princess, you have such high expectations for me. Your faith in my abilities to get women into bed with me is astounding and it humbles me."

"Yeah sure, you don't do humble Loke but this princely act is pretty adorable. Maybe someday it'll get you somewhere," she sing-songed after letting her hair fall loose at the small of her back, clearly frustrated with the sheer amount of hair she had to work with.

Before the Lion Spirit could make a retort, Virgo had reappeared, "Why don't you try this on, Princess? If it doesn't please you, I'll be punished swiftly."

Taking the bundle of clothing from her Maid Spirit, she shook her head furiously, "No Virgo, I won't be punishing you and I'm sure it will be perfect anyway. You always bring me such cute things from the Spirit World. You're quite the seamstress."

Without waiting for a response, she ducked into the safety of her little bathroom, setting the clothes on the edge of her sink before unfolding them on piece at a time.

When the blonde bombshell stepped from behind the door, her Lion Spirit very obviously approved of her attire before she did a little spin. Virgo had brought her perfectly cut dark-washed high-waisted denim jeans that felt as if they had been well-worn and soft from years of wearing, a simple cropped black t-shirt, falling perfectly to hover just over the button fly of her jeans but the cherry on top, was the black leather motorcycle jacket, covered in patches that represented each of her precious spirits, killer golden hardware adorned the loose buckle at her hips, the zippers and studs randomly pressing through the worn leather. The back had the constellation represented by Draco, the Dragon in the same golden studs, and Lucy felt like she could take on the world.

Pulling her pink-haired spirit into a heartfelt hug, her voice was exuberant, "This is freakin' perfect, Virgo! I look sexy and bad ass and can I keep this jacket?"

Bowing slightly to her mistress, she giggled at her enthusiasm, "Of course, Princess. If that'll be all, I'll be sending out Cancer to work on your hair and makeup?"

"Thank you so much again! I love it and you rock," beaming at the spirit before checking out her butt in the full length mirror and turning to where Loke had stifled the trickling of a nose bleed with his pocket handkerchief. She asked the spirit expectantly, "Well? What do you think?"

Though he may not approve of the choice in date, he had to agree that she looked amazing, "I think you're going to leave him begging for more, Lucy. Whether you want any more from the Seith Mage, will be totally up to you."

The undertones of disapproval were not easily missed by the blonde but before she could address them, her Crab Spirit had popped out.

"Miss Lucy-ebi, what are we doing this evening? I hear you have a date to impress so how about we go for a messy high bun-ebi. Plenty of loose curls to frame your beautiful face with an effortless grace that'll knock this lucky man dead, ebi. Maybe a dark smokey eye-ebi?"

Contemplating for a minute before deciding, "Yes to the hair do, but I was actually thinking about just some seriously long, thick lashes and maybe some red lips? You know how I like my lipstick, Cancer."

Her deeply tanned spirit smiled at her in the reflection, "Of course I do-ebi. Matte and perfectly in place. No smears for our princess, ebi."

When Cancer had finished dolling her up, keeping her hair in place with two black chopsticks, each with two sapphires dangling from fan-like tops, she thanked the genius spirit before turning to her Lion, Will you escort me to guild, my flirty prince?"

Bowing deeply and extending his hand, his voice proud and rich, "I wouldn't dream of denying you anything, my beautiful Princess."

Hooking her keys to her hip, pulling on her combat boots and grabbing her cross-body deep blue leather purse, she looped her arm in her Lion's before locking up and making the trek to the guild to wait for her date. She was only going to be fifteen minutes late and who doesn't love a grand entrance right?

xXx

Bickslow had been slow to rise that morning, too many mugs of beer always did that to him. Which is why the Seith Mage usually stuck to whiskey, tequila or if he was feeling particularly frisky, brandy, they didn't leave his head pounding as he tried to work through his usual morning training. The trampoline wasn't doing him any justice when every time he flipped or twisted, his stomach flipped and twisted as well.

"Looking a little sloppy there, Bickslow," the Lightning Slayer called from the bench after he finished his presses, mirth lighting up his blue eyes.

Flopping onto his back in the center of the trampoline, the mohawked mage called back, "Hey, fuck you, Laxus. You know what happens when I drink pussy shit like that piss poor excuse for alcohol you had me drinking last night."

Wiping the sweat from the back of his neck, the black tank top clad mage made his way to the edge of the piece of equipment Bickslow was currently groaning from, "All I see is some whiny little pussy who can't handle a man's drink."

"Whiskey is a man's drink. Beer is the drink of rednecks and party boys who don't know the actual meaning of party," he quipped as he rolled off the springy black material and made his way to balance beam.

Letting out a rumbling laugh at his best friends lowered tolerance for teasing, waiting until he ran through an impressive series of flips, the blonde crossed his arms before asking, "So what are you going to do for your date with Blondie?"

Holding himself on one hand as he turned his head casually to look at the Dragon Slayer that had claimed the Celestial Mage as kin after the guild split, his tone was far too flippant for the blondes liking, "I'm going to take her to dinner."

"You have a date with the most beautiful woman in our guild, the Light of Fairy Tail, my little sister, on a typical dinner date? Are you fucking mad?"

Chuckling as he lowered himself to straddle the beam, he continued, "I guess I should clarify; I'm going to take her to my place and cook her dinner."

"No."

"No...?"

"No."

Raising a curious brow at his friends blatant disapproval, he threw the mage a bone, "Okay, I'll bite. No...what?"

Narrowing his gaze at the Seith Mage, "No, you won't be taking my sister to your place. I know what happens at your place, Bix and I want none of that for my innocent little sister."

Trying to bite back his laughter at the overprotective streak Lucy brought out in his boss, he narrowed his eyes mirthfully in return, "I promise to be on my best behavior, Bossman." Landing from a perfect backflip as he sauntered out of the gym at Laxus' house, throwing back over his shoulder with a carefree wave, voice light and teasing, "Though I don't think Cosplayer is as innocent as you make her out to be."

Quickly making his way back to his own home, the mohawked man came to the familiar old style brick townhouse he'd bought years ago before heading though the bright red front door and up into his shower to wash off the days workout and hopefully wash away the lingering effects of his barley induced hangover.

Throwing on a pair of black jeans, tight in all the right places to show off his well sculpted ass and just how well endowed he really was, and a clean maroon v-neck t-shirt before slipping on the front plate of his visor and lacing up a pair of well-worn brown leather boots and making his way to the guild, babies floating in tow.

He had managed to get there five minutes early for his date with the Celestial Mage, so he opted to hang out at the bar since they really wouldn't be at the guild too long.

The Seith Mage tried to duck the glinting sapphire eyes of the demon barmaid, but there was no place for him to go until Lucy showed. With a lecherous grin and false bravado, he lured the Takeover mage to him instead of putting off the inevitable.

"My Bickslow, it's been awhile since I saw you out of your usual garb. Your date must really be something if she's got you into big boy clothes," Mira spoke easily, trying to bait the unusually hard to read mage.

His tongue lolled out before answering, "I know you know I've tricked Cosplayer into a date, Demoness. I'll be sure to corrupt your sweet little blonde friend and send her back to you with all the dirty details."

"You can't fool me. Even if I thought you meant that, Laxus would kill you and whisk Lucy away before I could get any details from her, dirty or otherwise. You've got to have quite a set on you to go after the Thunder Gods precious little sister."

Rolling his eyes from behind his visor, his voice was playful, "Don't worry, Boss has made his opinion of me and his kin very clear. Told me outright that she wasn't allowed to come to my place under any circumstances. It was actually really cute."

"I think Lu-chan will surprise the both of you. She's not all sweet smiles and easy forgivness," the silver haired beauty drawled as she looked to the doors of the guild hall pointedly.

xXx

She was honestly trying to hurry but as soon as she had passed the little candy shop alone the canal, she had sent Loke back having to force his gate closed and called out her little dog spirit, giggling as he did his little wiggly dance. She scooped the adorable little guy into her arms and bought him the biggest, most colorful lollipop they had and cuddled him into her chest as he licked at the sugary treat.

Almost to the guild, her little spirit spoke up, "Puun pun, pun pun...pun?"

"No, Loke is a liar. I am going on a date but he's a good guy. Do you want to meet him, Plue?" She giggled as the little spirit wiggled excitedly.

Trying to do her best to rush but not look like she was rushing, she pushed open the doors to guild and was greeted with a chorus of 'hello's' and 'hi Lucy's'. Sending her guild a bright smile, the Celestial Mage scanned the guild to try and find the Seith Mage.

When she didn't see Bickslow right away, she noticed the extremely tall, very toned man leaning over the bar. Mavis, you could bounce quarters off that ass. I've always been a sucker for broad shoulders. I can't say I've ever envisioned myself with a man rocking a mohawk...oh my gods, I'm an idiot. Trying to hide the stumble as she realized the man she was ogling was in fact, her date for the night, rather unsuccessfully before tightening her hold on Plue and walking up the bar.

Mira was her usual cheery, bubbly self as she called to the blonde while wiping a mug out with a rag, "Oh, Lu-chan, don't you look positively edible this evening. I was just keeping Bickslow company while her waited for you to show." Sending the blonde a very obvious suggestive wink, "You two have fun now!"

Watching as the Takeover Mage turned to head back into the backroom, humming the whole way, Lucy waited until the door was firmly closed behind her before turning to greet her date, slight disappointed at the sight of his visor, "Hey, Bickslow, are you ready to head out?"

Finally turning to take in the sight of the Celestial Mage, Bickslow had to admit, she looked fucking good in that outfit. While he's always had an appreciation for a nice set of tits, her legs were the kind he liked to have wrapped around him while he buried himself deep into her core. Shaking his head to try to lose the image he'd just produced in his mind, his voice was deep but bright, "Hello there, gorgeous. Who do ya have there?," holding his arm out to take Plue from her.

Loosening her hold to allow Plue to go if he wanted to, she was sort of surprised to her usually shy spirit crawl onto Bickslow's shoulder. Turning back to her when he sat down to lick his lollipop, "Pun pun. Puuuuun punpun."

Giggling at the little spirits words, she answered, "Yeah, we'll see how he does. You going to stay up there?"

Giving her a little nod, Bickslow turned to gesture towards the guild hall doors leading back outside before whispering to the spirit, "So what are my odds here, little man? You think I got a shot with your perfect princess."

Ducking his huge head comically as he watched his blonde mage walk a few feet in front of them, speaking firmly, "Pun pun."

"Ride on. I will take those odds," quickly closing the gap between them and opening the door for the bombshell of a blonde, placing a hand on her lower back as she walked passed him.

Lucy let out gleeful, bubbling laughter as his babies all saddled up to her, Muu nuzzling into her chest, chirping lightly. Greeting each of the floating totems individually before holding Muu up and rubbing her nose along his face, "And hello to you, Cutie Pie. Just so you know, if Bickslow here messes this up, you're my go-to guy okay?"

Chuckling at the little blonde beside him, he glared playfully at the his smallest soul, "You little traitor, here I finally manage to score a date with Miss Fiore and you've already got her wrapped around your proverbial finger. You just can't find any good souls these days," smiling down at Muu with mock-disappointment.

"Pun pun puuuuuun," her little spirit drawled from where he had chomped through the rest of his lollipop and was clutching the side of the Seith Mages head.

Holding her arms up to the sick spirit, she half cooed half scolded him, "You know that's why I tell you to eat them slowly. I only got you the big one because I know Virgo doesn't let you have any in the Spirit World and I haven't called you out in a while. Do you want to go back and sleep your tummy ache off?"

Shakily nodding as he looked down, ashamed at being scolded in front of his new friend.

Before Lucy could send him back, Bickslow had ducked down and rubbed his head, "Don't worry, little man. I'm sure we'll see each other again," giving the spirit a knowing wink before Lucy called him back to the Spirit World.

She eyed the towering mage skeptically, "Plue seems to have taken a liking to you."

"Is that weird?," raising a brow at the questioning tone of her words, voice heavy with inflection.

Scrambling through her words as she waved her arms in front of her, "Oh no! I mean, yes. It is. But not because you're you. It's just Plue really doesn't like anyone, well he does. He's just really shy and usually he's terrified of new people. When he met Laxus, he actually kicked his shin before running to hide behind my legs. It was pretty funny to watch."

Letting a smooth laugh fall from his lips, his voice was like velvet to her ears, "Fuck, I would have paid money to see that. Little man's got a rebellious streak. I can get behind that."

After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Lucy realized they were walking away for downtown and walking towards the residential area of Magnolia, the high class residential area. Confused at what their destination could be, she tilted her head to look up at the Seith Mage from beneath her lashes, "Bickslow?"

"Hmmm," he answered easily.

"Where are we going? I'm all for a good surprise date, but this part of town is all houses..." her voice was quiet, questioning.

Putting his hand on her lower back again, he lead her to a beautiful, original deep red brick, townhouse with a heinously bright red door, before smirking down at her, "You're pretty smart, Cosplayer. But a pretty thing like you deserves the best, so I'm going to making you dinner tonight."

Her jaw dropping as she read between the lines of his words, barely choking out, "This...this is your house?"

"Last I checked."

"And you're going to cook for me...inside your house."

"It'd be weird if I cooked outside. Pasta doesn't do well on a grill."

Her voice was dreamy as she answered, still a little shell shocked, "Uh huh. Right, well shall we go through your...very vibrant door then?"

Sounding genuinely surprised, "You've never seen a red front door?"

Rolling her chocolate orbs, her voice was haughty as she answered, "Of course I've seen them, Bickslow. It really doesn't surprise me that you have a flashy front door either, you seem to like the attention it probably brings."

Tapping the end of her nose, his voice was cheery, "Ding ding, twenty points to the Cosplayer. Red is the color of the element fire, which draws in the attention and welcomes wayward souls. Or at least it does, if you believe in that sort of thing, which I do."

"I guess that makes sense then. The door suits you then, Bix. Now as much as I'm trying to fall back on my manners, I'm dying to see what the inside of your bachelor pad looks like," her voice impatient before a delicious blush spread across her face, only succeeding in knocking down a little more of Bickslow's resolve to keep his promise to the Celestial Mages intense older brother.

Gathering his nerves quickly, he unlocked his front door before letting it swing open, "After you, gorgeous."

Thankfully, Lucy's curiosity far outweighed any of the lectures Laxus had given her over the years to steer clear of the Seith Mages home as she walked through the door and into the home many a woman have fallen victim to the mohawked mages wily charms.


	3. Step Three: Take it Off

The moment she stepped through the door, she couldn't help but turn to look at the towering man to her right, her face lit with clear astonishment at the beautiful interior of his home. It honestly surprised her that a man with his reputation had such a cozy, impeccably decorated home. It was almost picture perfect with it's heavy colonial influences that showed through the pale green wallpaper on the top half of his walls, crisp white wooden paneling on the lower half, thick ornate molding along the ceiling of every room she could see as she stepped forward in the foyer to look to her left and right through the open acrhways on either side of her. Even the rich dark green fabric of his grand sofa flanked on one side by a very unique, velvet chaise lounge and a very stately white and ivory striped wingback chair on the other side; all facing towards the immense traditional stone fireplace. On the opposite side of the little foyer was his dining room that had an eight person light wooden table, it's legs carved with beautiful swirling patterns that matched the legs of the chairs surrounding it.

When she poked her head through the wide beautiful archway that lead to his living room, she saw the stairs that lead to his second story, the light wood matching that of his dining table; it's railing matched the rest of the intricate woodwork throughout the house. Without meaning to, she breathed under her breath as she traced the carvings of the archway that lead straight through to his very impressive kitchen, an interesting mix of professional grade equipment and rustic colonial woodwork of the rest of his decor, "Fucking fuck, this is...beautiful."

Smirking at the little blonde from where he was leaning back on his bright red front door, his voice was deep and lilting as he pushed off the door to put his hand on her lower back and lead her into the kitchen, "I'm glad you like it, Cosplayer. Took me years to get everything just right. You are looking at a lot of late nights out back."

Looking up at him with the same look of astonishment that had yet to be wiped from her face, Bickslow rather liked the shine it brought to her deep chocolate eyes, her voice was quiet and obviously impressed, "You mean...you did all this? The woodwork, I mean."

"Mmmm, yep. I carved the babies totems, too. They weren't really as involved though," winking at her before gently nudging her towards the breakfast nook in the back corner of his kitchen. He knew the giant glass windows that made up the whole back wall of his home would impress the Celestial mage, or at least he hoped they did. The best part of his three bedroom brick townhouse was the fact that he one of the biggest backyards in all of Magnolia's upper class residential area. Even with his decently sized two story workshop taking up a pretty hefty chunk of it, he had plenty of room to do his exercises that did not require the equipment Laxus had at his house or at the guild.

Blinking her wide orbs once, twice, three times before shaking her head to turn from looking up at the Seith Mage to look out his back windows, only to suck in a breath at the expansive garden of colors around the perimeter of his tall, white privacy fencing that enclosed the very large blanket of thick green grass.

Her voice was teasing as she gathered her wits and leaned an elbow on the wooden tabletop, facing the very obviously pleased man looming over her small frame as she sat on his bench, "Are you also a closet gardener as well as a master carver, woodworker, chef and lady-killer?"

Letting out a genuine lilting laugh at her words, he shook his head and turned to start working on their dinner, his voice matching the wide honest smile stretching across his face, "Now that, I cannot take credit for. Ever did all the gardens here. Laxus' and Freed's too; she says it makes her feel better when she has to visit our 'testosterone nests'." Pausing his actions to let his tongue loll from his mouth before his smile curled deviously, "You think I'm a lady-killer and yet you still walked into my parlour? Will you rest upon my little bed?"

Raising an impressed brow to the Seith Mage, her voice like silk as she answered, "Said the spider to the fly." Toeing her boots off and laying her soft leather jacket over the back of the bench before sauntering over to the suddenly still mage, continuing one of her favorite stories as she ran a hand down his toned chest, "Oh no,no for I've often heard it said, they never, never wake again, who sleep upon your bed."

Snaking his arm around her trim waist, his thumb rubbing the smooth skin of her back under her loose shirt, "Dear friend what can I do to prove the warm affection I've always felt for you?," ducking his head when he saw her enchanting brown eyes drop to his lips, licking her pillowy red lips in response before his communications lacrima went off from the corner of his butcher block island. Leaning his visored forehead on hers as he swore under his breath, "You've got to be fucking kidding me right now..." before picking the little device up and pushing magic into it.

When Laxus' smirking face greeted him, he had to give it the Lightning Slayer, he had weirdly in tune intuition when it came to the little blonde he claimed as his sister, so with a smile and his voice light, he greeted the hulking man, "Boss man, what's up?"

Lucy was having a much less calm reaction to her brother's interruption, so before he could answer the Seith mage, her sweet voice addressed the tall, mohawked man in front of her, "Do you mind if I speak to my brother? It shouldn't take very long at all."

Looking between her sugary sweet smile and Laxus' shaking head, his steely eyes telling him to not give the lacrima to her in a wordless plea, he handed the device to the Celestial mage and smothered his laughter as she thanked him. Her eyes narrowing to murderous levels as she looked at her fellow blondes figure and walking back out into his living room while he continued prepping for his dinner with the feisty mage, his babies chirping brightly to him after he heard her very agitated voice through the open archways of his house.

Pacing the plush white carpeting of Bickslow's living room, she hissed out at the Lightning dragon venomously, "I swear to Mavis herself Laxus, I will make your life a living hell if you just called to ruin my date with your best friend."

"Come on, sis. Like I would really sabotage your date-"

"You have done it before and I have absolutely no doubt that you are doing as we speak, right now. So tell me, bro, why did you call Bickslow? You could have easily called me instead."

Scoffing at the haughty woman, "Like you would have answered."

Narrowing her eyes dangerously as her voice dipped low, "You're right, I wouldn't have answered because I know you're being a giant fucking baby about me going on a date, ONE DATE, with a man who you literally spend all your time with when you aren't with me. What the fuck is your deal with this?"

Matching her dangerous gaze with his own, his deep baritone dipped lower, "My fucking deal is that you are my little sister and he is my best friend. I know the two of you better than anyone else and I am not about to deal with the fallout when you get too attached to him and he doesn't want a relationship with you. I love Bix but he doesn't do the whole monogamy, one-woman thing and you are a walking bleeding heart and you know what you bleed? Fucking romanticism and unshakable faith and sometimes, people don't deserve that. Especially not from you."

Laxus immediately regretted what he said when he saw the angry tears glistening in the corners of her milk chocolatey eyes but before he could apologize, her low hissing voice cut him off, barely a whisper through the lacrima, "Bickslow deserves the chance to prove you, to prove everyone wrong and guess the fuck what? I'm going to give it to him. I love you, Laxus but right now? Now, you're being the selfish asshole who thought his nakama wasn't good enough, wasn't strong enough and I don't really want to see you until you get your ego and your attitude re-the fuck-adjusted." Shutting off her magic from the lacrima before her tears could fall at the hurt look she put on her big brothers face.

Crumbling onto the smooth velvet of his chaise, she ran her fingers over her hair, trying to focus on anything except the horrible pit in her stomach at what she'd said because she was angry and hurt while staring at the long plush strands from the carpeting.

She didn't hear Bickslow's booted feet walk into the living room until he was couched in front of her and pulled the lacrima from her death grip to set it on his coffee table before brushing her loose hair from her face, his voice gentle as his fingertips lingered on her cheek, "He's just trying to protect you, Lucy."

Looking up to meet his eyes, disappointment flashing in her own wide eyes when she was greeted by his visor instead, before she spoke, her voice low and incredulous, "How can you still defend him after what he said about you?"

When a small sad kind of smile spread across his lips, her heart broke a little as he spoke honestly, "Because he's not wrong. I've never had a relationship that lasted longer than a one-night stand and I've done a lot of horrible things in my life. I don't deserve the chance to be with you, but you gave it to me anyway. He doesn't want you to get hurt because I'm an asshole with commitment issues and you are the fucking Light of Fairy Tail."

Rolling her eyes, surprising the Seith Mage, she scoffed as she pushed his shoulder playfully, "Well, the fly is kind of known for being naive. She did get eaten at the end of that tale."

His warm laugh filled the room at her words, his voice just as playful as hers as he offered her a hand, "I don't know how I like being compared to a fictional spider who lures beautiful creatures into his bed with flattery only drag them up his stairs to eat them. Doesn't exactly set the right mood for our date, Cosplayer."

Grinning up at the towering man, she took his hand with hers and lead him back into the kitchen, only letting go when they were both facing the island. Turning to look up at him, she ran a hand through his little side tufts of blue, mumbling under breath, "Just how I thought it'd feel..."

Shoving the little blonde gently, his voice full of mirth as he pulled the pancetta from what looked to be a very large wooden door but turned out to be his fridge, "You've been thinking about how my hair feels, eh? What other parts of body are on your innocent mind?," his tongue falling from his lips as his mouth split into a salacious grin.

"Careful, Bix, you're treading into dangerous waters and I don't think you can handle them," giving him a very suggestive smile as her hand trailed over his collarbone. Even with the thin maroon cotton separating their skin, his body tingled under her dainty fingertips unlike anything he'd felt with anyone before.

Before he could step forward to hold her body against his, Muu came tumbling between them, nuzzling into her breasts as he chirped cutely. His smile turned toothy and wide as he watched her cup the little soul in her hands and pressed feathery light kisses over his wooden face, cooing adorably, "Where did you run off to, Cutie Pie? I missed you while you were gone."

Bickslow got the rest of his dinner started, his pasta had already been boiling when he went out to retrieve her from the living room, so he just needed to work on the sauce while she spoke sweetly to his souls. Papa seemed to approve of the stunning woman as he sat on outstretched open palm, her voice melodic as she asked them question after question, seeming to not care at all that they were wayward souls or that they were completely taboo and a part of his very illegal and dangerous magic.

He honestly didn't know how to react to someone being so genuinely and innocently curious about them, as if she just wanted to know more about them to better get to know the souls those totems held. Of course, he knew all about them, their personalities, their pasts, the dreams they had when they were alive, but no one, not even Laxus had ever just talked to them as if they had opinions and feelings.

Her sweet, curious voice broke his thoughts as she leaned her chin on his arm from behind him while he stirred the sauce he'd whipped up, thanking Mavis she was behind him as her sinful moan sent a wave of arousal straight to his groin, "Mmmm, this smells amazing. What did you make for me, chef?"

Trying to focus on stirring on the creamy sauce instead of the the feel of her chest pressed into his back threatening to send all the blood from his brain to his cock, clearing his throat before answering her, voice slightly tighter than usual, "Bucatini carbonara, la mia luce stellare. Would you mind pulling out two pasta bowls from that cabinet the the left of the fridge?"

Pointing up to the cabinet in question, "This one?"

"That's the one," giving her a little nod before whispering quietly to his babies.

Giving him a skeptical look before turning to grab the bowls only to stop mid-reach to cross her arms over her chest, leaning against the golden granite countertop, "Gee, I'd love to grab your bowls except you seem to keep them on a shelf only people over six feet can reach."

Chuckling as he absently wiped his hands on a towel on the countertop next to the industrial gas stove, "Why don't you stir and I grab the bowls since there is a height requirement for one of those tasks," hitting the blonde with a brilliant smile as he reached over her head easily to grab two dark blue stoneware bowls.

Putting her hands flat on his chest as she ducked around his body to get to the sauce pan, her breathing shallow at his closeness before she threw over her shoulder to the Seith Mage setting the breakfast table up for two, "Some day, you'll need to walk through a very low doorway, and when that day comes and your back hurts from bending over or you hit your head off the frame, I want you to think of me and how I wouldn't have any trouble with it thanks to my short stature."

Taking over her stirring once again to pour the sauce over the pasta, he gestured over to the table indicated for her to sit before his light, carefree voice responded, "While I'll be sure to keep that in mind, I've never had any trouble bending over. It's kind of my thing, Cosplayer."

Keeping her hungry gaze on the steaming nests of pasta in his hands, her voice was distracted, "Right, right. You're the acrobat and a gymnast, very flexible. No trouble with doorways."

Setting the bowl down in front of her, chuckling as she looked at the dish longingly, joking tone taking his deep voice, "Or limbo competitions."

Finally looking up at the Seith Mage, her voice was casual as she shrugged, "I have years of ballet training under my belt so like, I might be able to go a few rounds with the champ," before looking around, her brows furrowing as she asked, "Where are my babies? Aren't they going to eat with us?"

He couldn't help but cough at her possessiveness of his babies, swallowing his bite before asking incredulously, playful undertones lacing through his words, "Your babies?"

Matter-of-factly meeting his gaze, "Yeah, my babies. I've claimed them as my own and I know at least Muu likes that I have. I'm pretty sure Mimi and Momo are on my side of the fence, Mama plays for both teams, but Papa is still firmly on Team Testosterone, so you've still got that," a smile curled her red pouty lips as she tacked on confidently, "for now."

Taking her first bite of his delicious smelling dinner, she hadn't meant for the low moan to slip out but it did and as her blush spread across her face, Bickslow's grin spread across his before his deep voice answered her question, "The babies usually head up to the library when I have company since they don't eat."

Scoffing at his words before she quipped, not unkindly, "Right. So how many girls fall victim to your tricksy ways with this homey dinner date schpeal?," waving her fork around to gesture between them before taking another bite to hide her smile.

Without looking up from his wine glass, which Lucy had just now noticed he had set in front of them, deep red glistening like rubies as he answered easily, "None. I never bring girls here. I rarely have anyone that's not my team here."

Sputtering for a moment, she collected herself enough to have her voice come out confused, wishing she hadn't opened her mouth, "If you don't bring them here, where do you bring them?"

"Did and I usually took them to Laxus' place. He usually stays at the guild or your place," pausing before tacking on, "and I have a room over there."

He couldn't hide his shock as she dropped her fork in her bowl with a loud clatter, her voice rushed, "I know you do! That's where I sleep when I stay over at his place! Ew my gods, that is so freakin' gross."

Completely ignoring her obvious wigging out, his voice was equally as confused as it was shocked, "Why on Earthland do you sleep in my bed when you stay there? Didn't he give you a bedroom?"

Riding out a very intense wave of heebie jeebies before answering the Seith Mage, "Well, duh but your room has a balcony off the back of the house, away from his ridiculous outdoor lights, and I can see the stars better out there. Usually I'm too tired when I come back inside to walk to the other side of his ridiculously large house so I crash in your bed, but not anymore. I'll just sleep on the balcony from now on."

Running a hand through his mohawk, his voice came out a little breathless, "Well you don't really have to worry about that now."

"That's a relief. I really like your bed. It's got insanely soft sheets and it's really comfy and EW I'VE SLEPT NAKED IN THAT BED!"

Choking on another bite of pasta at her outburst, she stood to pound his back to dislodge it as her face stayed horrified until he, again, managed to swallow his bite before his voice, hoarse from coughing, cut through as he turned to look up at her, "Why would sleep naked in my bed? How would that even happen?"

Rolling her eyes as she sat back down, "Well, you see, I start by taking all my clothes off and then I crawl into bed." Leaning forward on her elbows to whisper to the blunette as if she was telling him a secret, her voice with even more sarcasm than her previous statement, "And then I get really crazy and I fall asleep."

Completely not appreciating her sarcasm, his mouth flattened to portray what she assumed to be a lack of amusement before clarifying for the older man, "So maybe I don't particularly like wearing clothes when I sleep...ever but you can't tell Laxus that or he'll never let me in your bed ever again. I've already gotten a very weird talk about safe sex from him as one adult to another and it...it just left a bad taste in my mouth so I don't want him to freak out over this." Her eyes widening as she asked him earnestly, "You washed those sheets after every...happy ending, right?"

Luckily, he stopped his fork before he could choke on another bite at her choice of words, "Gods woman, yes, now can we please stop talking about this. Please."

"Fine, I'll stop." Taking a few bites in silence before she burst out, "How is this even remotely bad for you? What difference would it make for you where I sleep, all I do is sleep!"

"Seriously, Cosplayer, this is just as traumatizing for me as it is for you," adding with an air of seriousness...Lucy didn't understand.

Adding quietly under her breath before taking another bite, "I seriously doubt that."

If he didn't have his visor on, she would have seen the deadpan look he was giving her before he decided on a change of subject, "How's the Lion doing?"

"Pfft, Loke? He's still acting as protector of my virtues and my reputation with an alarming ease. He even tried to forbid me from this date, which was a hilarious failure. Why? Do you miss getting your ass handed to you?," giving the mohawked mage a shit-eating grin over her wine glass before she took a sip.

Grinning at her cheeky antics, he leaned back and put his arms behind his head, giving the Celestial mage a very nice view of his bulging, toned arms and chest as the maroon fabric stretched tight over his pecs, her wandering eyes not going unnoticed by Bickslow before drawling good-naturedly, "There's nothing sexier than a capable woman in a skimpy outfit with a whip who knows how to use it."

Raising her brows at him, she giggled before taking another sip of her wine.

When both mages finished their food and their first two glasses of wine, Lucy had a flushing buzz and wanted to take a tour of Bickslow's beautiful home, which the tall man obliged. Offering his hand to her once again to help her up from the breakfast nook, smiling wide as she laced her finger with his and spoke sweetly, "Lead the way, Mister Spider."

Shaking his head at her nickname, he lead her back through the archway to the foyer, "You obviously have seen my dining room and my living room. The little door next to the staircase is a half-bath and there are a couple of closets here and there." Nodding her head at his words, he continued up the stairs, her little socked feet silent as she trailed behind him. When they made it to the top of the stairs, he opened the door right at the landing and stepping back to let her look through, knowing she would love his library, "This would be the library I was talking about. The babies sit up on the top shelf," pointing casually up to the left of her head, "which is where they sleep if I'm not here."

Gasping as she turned to face him, batting at him with her hand, "You leave them here by themselves?"

Chuckling under his breath before his voice came through playful and teasing, "Are you offering to babysit for me, Cosplayer?"

Giving him a little pout as she looked to his totems lovingly, "Of course! They can come to my apartment and play with Plue."

He let out another hearty chuckle as his arm snaked around her waist, leading her back out the door, shutting it behind him most of the way, but leaving it cracked enough Muu could get out like he always did at night, before moving down the hallway to the second bedroom that he mostly just used for storage, opening the door to show the curious Celestial Mage, "I just use the spare bedroom for storage mostly. Random boxes, books that didn't fit in the library; there is a bed under there somewhere but like I said, I don't really have people over so the bed is more of a nuance than anything."

Knowing the next and technically last room was his bedroom, had the usually fearless mage tangled into a mass of nerves as he lead her to the last door to their left and opening the door, once again letting her in first as he leaned in the doorway, his voice tighter than usual, "Which makes this..."

"...your bedroom," her voice was dreamy as she padded across the hardwood to the massive bed and trailing her hand along the soft, white down comforter that was spread across the mattress, which matched the waist-high wainscoting, meeting deep sapphire silk wallpaper that was framed by intricate wide molding like the downstairs. She let out a little contented sigh as she turned back to face the towering, deeply tanned man, her voice as bright as her smile as she spoke airily, "It smells like you. It's really beautiful, or at least the parts I can see are really beautiful. It's kind of dark in here," chuckling as she walked back out, grabbing his wrist as she lead him back down to the living room and plopping them on his couch.

Genuinely curious of her opinion, he drawled easily, "So what did you think, la mia luce stellare?"

Leaning against the back of his very plush, very old style Victorian couch, her voice was dreamy and tired, "You have one of the most beautiful homes I've ever been inside. I adore it." Pausing to hum before scooting closer to him, her head resting on his arm as she threw her legs over his lap, "What's that mean?"

Playing with her loose curls absently, he distractedly asked her, "Hmm? What's what mean?"

"'la mia luce stellare', that's the second time you've called me that tonight," closing her eyes as she inhaled his familiar cedar and faint sandalwood scent as he lulled her with his ministrations.

"It means 'my starlight', does it bother you?"

"Not one bit." Waiting a beat before opening her golden eyes, her voice earnest, "You know bothers me endlessly?"

Frowning at her question, he tilted his head as he asked, worry lacing his tone, "No, why don't you tell me?"

Stating matter-of-factly, "The visor."

His mouth floundering for a moment before his brain settled on repetition, "The...visor."

"S'what I said, Bix. You act like I haven't seen your eyes before so in case you forgot; I have and I think they are fucking gorgeous," looking up at him from under her thick lashes, melting away the last of his resolve.

"I wear the visor for a reason, Lucy. I don't want to lose control-" her dainty finger cut him off.

The shushing motion took him by surprise enough for her adamant voice to cut in, "You aren't going to lose control. I would really like for you to take it off."

Relenting as she pulled her finger away from his lips to grab a handful of his shirt instead, her chin resting on his chest to look up at him expectantly, his voice was soft and thoughtful, "How about this, if we go on another date, I'll take my visor off for you."

"If?"

Smiling down at the little blonde, he kissed her forehead warmly before asking, "Will you go on another date with me, Lucy?"

Humming in response, she quickly tilted her head up to press her own kiss to his angular jaw, "Absolutely, Bickslow."

They sat on the couch, cuddled together for another ten minutes before she lifted her head once again, "Hey, Bix?"

His deep lilt had turned sleep-ridden and husky, "Yeah, babe?"

"Can I sleep in your bed?"

"Mmhmm, you'll need to borrow a shirt to sleep in," moving to sit up and carry the tiny woman curled in his arms up to his bedroom. Effortlessly whisking her up the stairs and setting her on the edge of his bed to grab her one of his old t-shirts and handing it to her. His smile curled as she starting pulling her plain black shirt from her body, before he could see the very sexy, deep blue bra underneath, he ducked into his master bathroom to strip down into his black, tight briefs, unbuckling his visor and setting the metal plate on the edge of his sink before heading back out to his bedroom.

He had to suppress the urge to jump the poor sleepy beauty sprawled out across his bed, his plain black t-shirt falling mid thigh as her nipples poked through the material before she opened her heavy-lidded eyes. The lazy genuine smile that curled her deep red lips had his stomach doing flips, before her low raspy voice called to him, "I didn't know which side you slept on so I waited for you to get out. I'm very glad I did."

Lifting his comforter to usher her underneath, her little cheeky panties flashing as she crawled to the other side of his bed, further testing him, as he asked, voice strained, "Why's that?"

Waving him to lay beside her, she waited until he was comfortable before pulling his arm up and tucking herself into his side, her bare thigh draped high over his abs as her breath danced over his chest, "Because I got to see your very built body and those gorgeous eyes of yours. I really like seeing the top half of your handsome face."

He ran his long fingers through her loose golden hair, kissing the top of her head before his low voice filled her ears, "Goodnight, la mia luce stellare."

Humming softly, she pressed her lips to his toned chest, her voice tired and breathy, "Goodnight, Bix, I had an amazing time with you."

He waited until her breathing evened out before breathing out, barely a whisper, "Laxus is going to fucking murder me."


	4. Step Four: Sneak Out of the House

When Lucy stretched her arms high above her head, she was brought out of her sleepy reverie at the distinct masculine scent with undertones of cedar that only came from the Seith Mage currently laying next to her. Opening one of her golden eyes to peak at what was the source of the weight over the bare skin of her toned stomach, she realized the t-shirt Bickslow had given her had ridden up at some point in the night, exposing the dark lace of her barely there thong and apparently, her sleeping partner was a fellow cuddler because on further inspection, she realized his other arm was under her neck as a sort of make-shift pillow and curled back around to tangle in her hair while her one of her arms was tucked under his pillow arm and before she stretched, she was pretty sure her own arm was wrapped around the slim, toned waist next to her. Her feet were tangled between his calves, brushing the hair over the muscle as she stretched her toes as she breathed in his delicious scent, burying her face back into the tanned skin stretching taut over the lean muscle of his chest and letting out a sigh of contentment.

Hearing the low, sleep-ridden, huskiness of his voice, the little blonde couldn't stop the little giggles from dancing over his chest, "Are you ready for breakfast already, Starlight?" Rolling over onto his back as he rubbed his still-closed eyes, she couldn't help but notice how the muscles of his stomach tense and flex as he stretched his back before he added, "Because I'm gonna be honest with you, I need you to leave until my magic gets done...doing it's thing."

Tracing the tattoo over his nose with a feather light touch, her voice was genuinely curious as she asked, "What does that mean exactly?," before sitting up and turning to tilt her head quizzically, the golden silk of her hair was tickling across the skin of his abs as she did, noticing he hadn't moved his hands from his eyes as he spoke.

"It's like an instinct of my Seith Magic to take stock of the souls surrounding me. I don't want anything to happen to you by accident in the initial pulse," breathing out quietly as he pressed the crook of his elbow over nose, covering his tattoo and his eyes all in one go.

Lucy had no idea what it was like to have such a taboo magic, a black magic to be exact, but she knew that Bickslow wouldn't do anything to hurt her on purpose. So with a small smile spreading across her stain-free lips, she put a gentle hand under his bicep and lifted his tanned arm, her voice just as gentle, "Bix, I feel like you should already know this but I'm going to say it out loud anyway, I trust you and I trust your magic. I don't want to have to close my eyes every time I wake up next to you...er...if I wake up next to you...," trying desperately to withhold her own instincts to face palm at her little slip up.

Lifting his arm to pull himself upright, he let out an shaky breath before whispering to the girl who already broke down too many of his carefully placed walls without even realizing. He never let anyone sleep over at his house. Never. That included his teammates for this exact reason; while he had unwavering control over his Figure Eyes, the invasive nature of his Seith Magic as a whole picked up on way more than most people are willing to share to him of all people and to make things worse, most people have some sort of resistance to the pulse having a conscious mind preoccupied with other things but Lucy wouldn't. She just woke up and she had no guards up which meant he could pick up on pretty much anything her soul had to offer, something he wasn't willing to take from the perfect woman next to him. However, he was very eager to start up a conversation about the whole 'every time I wake up next to you' thing; that was something he was stoked to talk about. With a very heavy sigh, he gave the Celestial Mage a very brief explanation of what was about to happen, "The pulse will read your soul, Lucy. I'll be able to see everything and-"

With a roll of her eye, she interrupted indignantly, "So? You see my soul every day and you've had possession of my soul. I really don't see what's the big schtick about you seeing it now. I mean, I don't have anything to hide from you."

His voice took a surprisingly stern edge as he pulled his legs from the bed to rest his feet on the cold wood floor, "I'm serious. Please...at least wait in the bathroom until it passes, then I'll be right in to grab my visor."

Her eyes went wide as she noticed just how tense the muscles of his back were as he hunched over the edge of his bed. Feeling bad for pushing him on something she obviously had no right to, she crawled over to step off the bed but not before pausing next to him and pressing a soft kiss to his cheek, her voice small and apologetic, "I'm sorry, Bix. I shouldn't push you into something you aren't comfortable with. I'll just go down and start breakfast."

He stayed in the exact hunched over position until he heard her shut the door quietly behind her, her almost silent steps disappearing before he heard her greet the babies with her usual cheer when she saw them. He rubbed down the sides of his face before he opened his eyes, the bright green flash that emanated from his eyes took in the souls around him and while she had left the room, he could still read her soul clear as crystal. He should have known it wouldn't have made a difference, the woman had the most open and inviting soul he had ever seen and she almost never put up walls to keep people out because that would mean she would have to stay within them. From the day he first saw her, the blinding golden light of her soul reached out to everyone around her, including him. Mumbling unintelligible half-curses under his breath as he made his way to the bathroom to grab his visor and get ready for the day.

Meanwhile, Laxus had a very intense need to talk to his best friend. After the fight he had with Lucy, he knew he had things to apologize for and things he needed to say to Bickslow. The Lightning Slayer wasn't looking forward to talking with his little sister and had absolutely no clue how to make things better with her yet, so he was going to mend the gap he knew he could without any dramatics. Heading out from his home outside of Magnolia, he made a beeline for the brick townhouse with an ungodly bright red door to set things right with Bickslow.

The younger blonde was desperately trying to find Muu, which is how the blunette found her on her knees, ass up displaying the sexiest and saddest piece of lace he had ever seen in his life as she ducked under the coffee table, her voice playful as her golden hair fell in a sheet over the rug of his living room, "Muu...where are you? Who will I give a great, big, good morning kiss to if I can't find you?"

With a smug smile as he leaned against the bottom of his staircase, his dark jeans pulled over his waist and his visor buckled over his face but nothing else to cover his amazingly toned body, his voice was full of playful suggestion, "Well, I hate to remind you, Cosplayer, but I was actually your date last night so I think I deserve a great, big, good morning kiss."

With a startled squeak and a jump, the tiny woman hit her head off the wood of his table, jostling the lacrima and vase full of lilies as she did. Holding the side of her head in her hands, she moved out from under the offending piece of furniture to give him a sheepish smile, her voice slightly sad as she moved to stand, her slumped posture displaying the sadness of her voice as physical embodiment, "I can't find Muu anywhere. All the other babies came down to help me get breakfast ready, but when I realized he was missing, I went to look for him." Turning with her hands on her hips, determined glint in her eye before she walked over to the towering man leaned on the banister, her golden eyes narrowed suspiciously at him as she poked into his bare chest, "You know where Muu is. Why don't you tell me and then I can go get him. Pleeeeeeeeease," suddenly giving him the biggest, roundest, most hypnotizing golden puppy dog eyes he had ever seen in his life.

With an easy laugh, he motioned his arm wide towards the steps before ducking his head as if telling her a closely guarded secret, his hand up to cup his words which only succeeded in sending a wave of shivers down her spine to settle in the slow-forming pool of heat in her stomach, "Muu usually ends up in the bedroom with me. He likes to fall asleep to the sound of breathing since he doesn't do it anymore."

Practically running up the stairs, she paused midway before turning back down to stand two steps from the bottom, still not managing to be eye level with the Seith Mage, and putting both her hands on either side of his face and rising to her tiptoes to press her pillowy lips against his in a sweet, too quick kiss, whispering under her breath as she pulled away, "Good morning, Bix," shooting a big beaming smile at the handsome man before disappearing up his steps to find the littlest baby, the smooth skin of her ass exposed to him as she ascended.

His voice was low as he rubbed his lips, "Good morning indeed," before adjusting the impressive bulge of his jeans as he made his way to his kitchen to start breakfast.

Making quick work of the hallway to push back into Bickslows bedroom, she finally found the little totem on the back of the bed frame, her voice quiet as she moved up to kneel in front of him on the bed, "Good morning, Muu. We are making breakfast and I could use some help if you wanted to wake up, baby," cupping the shaky frame as if he were yawning before lifting in a slow, lazy motion before flying into her chest with a bright chirp. Hugging the babiest baby tightly before setting him free to put on her jeans and bra, not really wanting to take off his shirt just yet as she called pleasantly, "Come on, let's go help Bixy get breakfast ready."

Making her way to the bottom of the stairs, chatting with Muu the whole way, before hearing a knock at Bickslow's door and freezing in place mid-step.

Without really thinking, the tanned mage wiped his hands on the rag slung carelessly over his shoulder to answer his door before seeing Lucy's wide panicked eyes out of the corner of his own, silent realization that there are only a select few people who know where he lived and one in particular would have reason to be at his door on this morning specifically. His lips mouthed to the little blonde, Laxus?

She gave him a quick nod before she gracefully and silently crossed the living room, pulled him down to kiss his cheek before putting her finger over her lips and grabbing her jacket, purse and boots without making a sound, leaving him with a far-off impressed look on his face as he stood in the little hallway leading to his foyer.

Another much louder knock resounded through his home, the Dragon's baritone was booming, even through the door, "Come on, man. I know I fucked up, just let me in so I can explain." Effectively making the Seith Mage cringe before turning back around to see she had left through his back door and was scaling his very tall privacy fence with an ease that should have been alarming for such a small framed woman but only made him shake his head while a deep throaty chuckle escaped his lips.

Running his hand through the top of his hair, he closed the space between him and the front door before opening it, his voice bright as he greeted his best friend, "Bossman, what brings you to my neck of the woods so early this morning?"

Not waiting for an invitation, Laxus walked straight through the foyer into the kitchen to sit at the breakfast nook, his hand heavy as it rubbed down his face, his voice was...well, as apologetic as Laxus got when it came to everyone except Lucy, "I know I was a huge dick on the phone with Blondie and I said some shit I shouldn't have because I was fucking pissed off and worried. So, I came here so we could have coffee, big brother to potential boyfriend of his little sister to get all the weird shit out of the way," leaning forward on his elbows to look at the shirtless mage leaning his hip against the island in the center of his kitchen. His babies were all tumbling and chirping rather animatedly, even for them, before his words tumbled out, knowing his sister always had a soft spot for his smallest totem, "Where's the little guy?"

The mohawked mage took a minute to look around, listening to his remaining four babies before they let him know Muu went with Lucy. Smacking his palm to his forehead in a very uncharacteristically for the usually smooth and collected man causing the blonde's steel eyes to narrow dangerously at the man before he turned to start the coffee, his voice teeming with forced ease, hopefully enough to convince the skeptical Dragon at his breakfast table, "You know how Muu is; he likes to wander sometimes."

Seemingly accepting the answer for now, Laxus relaxed back into the booth with a nod of his head before turning to look out the back windows into the gardens as a silence washed over the two men.

Releasing the breath he didn't know he was holding, the Seith Mage went back to fixing coffee for the two of them, hoping that Lucy managed to get out of Mr Wareme's backyard before he realized she was there. That old man hated Bickslow and he certainly wouldn't like some random woman scaling the fence into his precious garden from his side of the fence.

xXx

Breathless from all her impromptu climbing, the Celestial Mage was doubled over three blocks from Bickslow's house before she realized Muu was pushing her butt forward, telling her to keep moving before her brother found them and killed his mage. Chuckling at the little soul's dramatics, she patted his head and spoke confidently, "Laxus isn't going to kill Bix, Sweetie. They are best friends and teammates." Turning to make her way towards the guild before mumbling under her breath, "Although, I don't know how Bix is going to feel about you taking an unexpected field trip with me."

After a short walk, she was pushing through the guilds front doors with Bickslows shirt tied just under her breasts to cinch her waist and hopefully, deter anyone from knowing it wasn't actually her shirt before making her way towards the bar to order a strawberry smoothie from the bustling silver-haired beauty. Her voice was back to its usual cheery drawl as she bounced to her usual bar stool, "Mira-chan, I'd like-"

"A strawberry smoothie, extra vanilla cream and lots of whipped cream on top," the cheeky woman cut in with a bright smile as she placed the drink in front of the giddy blonde. Watching her take a sip before leaning against the bar, the oldest Takeover mage's voice turned antsy, bubbling with excitement, "Well?! How'd it go, Lu-chan?"

Swallowing the frozen perfection quickly, the little blonde's whole face took a dreamy air to it, huge brilliant smile spreading before she told the older mage everything. Ducking her head and motioning the silverette to lean closer so she could whisper without the other guild mates's hearing, her voice was almost non-existent as she breathed out, "I spent the night at his house, Mira. Nothing happened but it was...actually really perfect. Until Laxus came over and I had to sneak out of his house."

"YOU DID WHAT?!"

Pulling the hysterical woman back down with a hand clamped over her mouth and the other wrapped around the back of her head before hissing out, "Calm down or everyone will know and Laxus will kill Bickslow. I kind of would like to get to go on our second date before that happens."

At her hushed words, Muu was all but ramming into her side, angry chirps coming from his little body before she turned to coo at him, "Don't worry, Sweetie. I'm not going to let anything happen to Bix." Her words seeming to soothe the soul enough to settle back into her lap as she released Mira with a stern glare.

Her eyes were still shining with little hearts, but her voice was quiet even though it was still bursting with her excitement, "So, you just slept over at his house? Did he take the couch and give you his bed? Does he have a spare bedroom?," pausing to give the giggling blonde a devious grin before stating, "You two shared a bed. You two shared his bed. Are you sure nothing happened because you are wearing his shirt, my little Lulu..."

Sputtering for a moment through her laughter at the barmaid's always on point intuition when it came to relationships, or was it just hopeful thinking on her part..., either way, she was right about the sleeping arrangements and the shirt, so after another quick slurp of her drink, Lucy smiled and ducked her head once again, "I didn't bring my keys with me and I didn't bring any other clothes. I really wasn't planning on spending the night but dinner was amazing and he was amazing."

Humming her approval, the oldest Strauss muttered under her breath about little blonde red eyed babies as she walked into the backroom to start inventory, leaving Lucy to enjoy her delicious pink drink to wait for Bickslow to come to the guild so she could give Muu back; even though she really didn't want to.

After she finished the frozen drink and spent some time talking with Muu about his relationship with his mage, learning he was the last soul to be found by Bickslow just in the nick of time. Lucy had no idea why Muu was so small, she had plenty of speculations but she couldn't have guessed that Muu was the soul of a young boy who died in the street. He had been sick and homeless, left to die alone in an alley without any friends or family to mourn him, and because he was so weak when he died, he couldn't travel to find peace. So he stayed trapped in the sad alley where he died for years before Bix happened to find him on a job one night and instead of leaving him, he attached him to his visor until he could carve his own totem; even listened to him when he said he didn't want a big body.

When out of nowhere, Master had called down to her from the second floor, his small stature standing at the top of the stairs with his arms behind his back, "Lucy, child, I need to speak with you in my office." Noticing the look of confusion that spread across her face as she made her way up the stairs with one of the Seith Mage's souls, he spoke quieter, a grandfatherly smile spreading as he patted her butt, "Don't worry, dear. You aren't in trouble."

Giving the little man an incredulous look before he took his hand away from her ass to open his office door to let her in. When he settled behind his desk and she settled in on the armchair opposite of him. Muu nestled into her chest as she hugged him into her, the old Wizard Saint leaned on his elbows in a very Laxus-like fashion before explaining, "I've gotten an urgent request from the king of Joya. He seems to think he has a problem only a Celestial Mage can solve and while I would have no problems sending you there with your team, you don't have a team right now. I know that you and my grandson work very well together, so I was thinking you could instead take the Thunder God Tribe to the capital city, Opalle, and see what he needs. It's going to be a rather lengthy trip seeing as it takes almost three weeks to get to Joya and then you'll have to trek through the mountains on foot just to get to the interior..."

Shaking her head at the overwhelming amount of information Gramps was throwing at her before taking a deep breath, her brows furrowed tightly as she asked, "Wait, what does the king of Joya need a Celestial Mage for in the first place? Couldn't Yukino go since I don't have my team?"

At some point during his little speech, he had gotten up to pace the top of his desk, which he continued to do as he answered her questions with his hand on his chin, his other arms still tucked behind his back, "He wouldn't tell me over the lacrima but he assured me that you would be compensated greatly for your trip and he specifically requested you by name even though the formal request is S-Class. Which leaves you in a very odd predicament," sitting on the edge of his desk in front of the openly gawking blonde woman, her jaw wide and her eyes shining with a cross of confusion and surprise, before continuing, "you are required to take an S-Class mage with you. That doesn't leave you with many options and since Mira can't leave, Erza's already on a mission and Gildart's is...well I guess you could ask Gildarts..." trailing off absently.

With a roll of her golden eyes, not so much at her Master but at the complete lack of information available to her before taking a deep inhale, holding for five seconds, and letting it go, her voice calm and even, "I'll ask Laxus when I see him if he'll come with me. If not, I'm sure I can get Gildarts to make the trip. When should I start planning?"

"Nonsense, Lucy, I've already called Laxus here. He should be here shortly for you to ask him and as far as planning goes, King Illium has already booked you a suite on a very nice cruiser to Roze, then a private yacht to the small town at the inner bay of Joya. You will have to make it over the Dragako Mountains by yourselves though."

Before Lucy could ask when she would need to be ready, Laxus and the rest of the Raijinshu came through the door to Master's office. The hulking Dragon standing directly behind the little Celestial Mage, his nostrils flaring as he took in the overwhelming scent of cedar and sandalwood which only belonged to one man, before swallowing his rage and addressing his grandfather, voice low with a rough tone that did very little to hide his obvious unhappiness with the tall mage to his left, "What's so important you dragged all of us to the guild? And what the hell is Blondie doing here?" Giving the back of her head a very intense glare, his anger flaring when she flipped her long waves over her shoulder in a blatant act to disregard him and his presence, exposing the loose fabric of a shirt that was most definitely not his sister's.

Completely ignoring the Dragon Slayer, Lucy leaned forward, her voice interested but full of concern, "While I'm honored to be requested by name by a foreign power, I don't have a lot of information to go on. How am I supposed to prepare for a mission that takes almost two months just to get there without actually knowing what the mission is?"

"Oh no, there is no fucking way she's leaving for that long without me. You can do your own fucking paperwork, Gramps," putting a hand on the back of her chair protectively as the behemoth blonde leaned over her tiny frame, earning a not-so-subtle huff of aggravation from beneath him.

With a bright smile, Master held his hands out in front of him, his voice too cheery for the deadly auras coming from both blondes, "Perfect! Our Lucy needed an S-Class to go with her and with your team to back her up, I feel much better about sending her off on a Top Secret Diplomatic mission all the way to Joya." Turning to grab a very thick envelope and handing it to the seething blonde sitting in front of him before adding, "Here is all the information I was given. This includes your boarding passes and identification papers for each of you as well as a schedule and the basic diplomatic ways of the Joyan people. I would recommend going to Laxus' and getting everything in order before going your separate ways."

Speaking through clenched teeth, both blondes answered with an equal lack of enthusiasm and abundance of sarcasm, "Great, just what I need," before glaring at each other, both seething with rage and unspoken ire. The smaller of the two getting up to storm out before turning back and thanking Makarov earnestly and motioning for the rest of them to follow her, her voice low and sarcastic, "Well, let's get to big brother's to figure what the hell we are getting into, shall we?"

Knowing exactly where she needed to go to get to Laxus' house, she harrumphed her way out of the guild, sending Mira a quick wave before heading through the guild doors, grumbling under her breath the whole way.

Ever and Freed shared a look of genuine 'what the actual fuck is going on' before following after the blonde long gone from the little office and the guild as they tried to catch up. When Bickslow made his way out of the double doors, the Lightning Slayer yanked his collar back and whispered in his ear, his voice dark and full of malice, "You better have a good reason for my little sister wearing your fucking shirt the morning after your date with her."

Swallowing thickly, he turned to face the glaring mage, his voice was surprisingly light, "Did you want to hear it now or when we finished marching to your house because Cosplayer is already halfway there."

"If Blondie spent the night in your bed, I'll make this trip the worst of your life. That's a promise, Bickslow," before letting go of the Seith Mage's loose dark blue tank top to follow the rest of his team.

After a few deep breaths, the blunette turned to his babies and muttered, "I can't wait to tell him what happened last night. He's the pinnacle of understanding and rational thought so this should go well." Running a hand through his hair, mussing the wild tufts up even more before catching up to Ever and Freed, both looking up at him, both with questioning glints in their eyes.

One very awkward, very silent walk later, the five mages were all surrounding the oval of Laxus' dining room table, the folder Master had given Lucy spread around the glass top as she turned to Freed, her voice bright with excitement as the pair leaned over the map he had pulled from the Lightning Slayer's library, "I haven't made the connection but if I happen to find some of the Jeweled Keys while we are up in the Dragako Mountain Range, I would be the world's happiest camper," her golden eyes shining with the starlight she loved at the prospect of getting new keys.

Freed's smooth as silk voice gave the little blonde shivers as he pointed to the pathway they would need to take to get to Opalle from the inlet their yacht would be dropping them off, "It would make the most sense seeing as Joya's main export is gemstones and precious metals. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for you to find these keys, Lucy."

Squeezing the Rune Mage into an unexpected hug as she all but squealed, "This is so exciting! Some of those keys haven't been contracted in decades, centuries maybe," her voice turning dreamy as she moved to face the Seith Mage on her left, her hands firm on the arms of his chair as she ducked lower to meet his visored face, his babies all chattering with her infectious excitement, "Can you imagine how amazing that would be, Bix?"

Granting the wild woman a huge grin, he unconsciously took a strand of her golden waves that fell into his lap into his hand to feel its silk before answering, his deep voice rich with genuine amusement, "It would be very interesting to watch you make a contract, la mia luce stellare. Which constellations are represented by the Jeweled Keys?"

Ignoring the grumbling growl from the seething Dragon Slayer at the head of the table, Lucy's voice grew heavy, "No one knows for sure. It's been so long since they've been with a mage and there are so many keys that are unaccounted for," running her fingers over the tight muscle of his shoulder before turning back towards Laxus' brooding frame, his bulky arms crossed over his chest as he glowered at the pair. Mirroring his defiant stance, her voice grew steadier, stronger, "So, shall we address the elephant in the room now, brother dearest?"

His voice came out petulant, even through the grumblings coming from deep in his chest, "And what elephant would that be, darling sister? There are so many to pick from."

Throwing her hands up in irritation, her voice was heavy with exasperation as she tried to keep from all out yelling at the older mage, "I'm talking about your ridiculous macho man display in Gramps' office earlier. Just so you are aware, if it wouldn't have been for him calling you specifically, I was going to take this job with Gildarts. I don't need you to take care of me like I'm some helpless little girl!"

"Oh, is that so? Is that why you couldn't handle being alone after the guild disbanded?" The harsh mocking tone of his words only steeled her resolve as he grinned at her.

Putting a hand on the thick glass tabletop, her voice came through steady even though her words were meant to cut, "I was going to apologize for what I said yesterday but now? Now I'm not so sure you deserve it. You're treating me like I am incapable of making my own decisions, too weak to fight my own fights and I am not weak. You taught me that every single day you took me out training with you. Every single time you sparred with me and you didn't hold back, you showed me I wasn't some glass figurine to be handled with care needing of protection. I will not let you talk to me like I am less than you, do you hear me Laxus Dreyar?," the moment her other fist came down on the table, the force of the connection sent spiderweb-like cracks from where the bottom of her hand connected, causing a series of gasps before she felt a familiar hand on the small of her back through the thin material of her borrowed shirt.

Keeping his eyes on Laxus' as he ducked his head to talk to the Celestial Mage, using his free hand to ease her hand back from the table, his voice was calm, soothing even, "How about you and I take a walk, Starlight." He posed it as more of a statement than a question as the little blonde, tears welling in the corners of her misty golden orbs, turned away from the Lightning Slayer and shoved Bickslow out of the way and out of the room.

"I don't care what the fuck you do to me, man, you can't keep hurting her by not trusting her to make her own decisions. She's already had one overbearing, over-controlling man take her freedom and independence, she doesn't need that from the only family she has left," not waiting to see what the grimacing man was about to say, he bounded off to check the once place he knew she would go.

Completely oblivious to what just happened, Evergreen tentatively spoke up from the chair beside Laxus, "Does someone want to tell me what's going on? Like why is Lucy wearing Bickslows shirt and why is he going all protector knight guy and OH MY GODS! THAT'S SO CUTE! When did that happen?" Her face was tight with apprehensive confusion before sensing the rage radiated from the Dragon next to her, growing quiet as she checked her nails. She waited a beat before adding quietly, "Though, Bickslow's not wrong, Laxus. I don't know what's gotten into you but Lucy is a queen. She could have probably done this job by herself no problem, S-Class or not, and that's because of you. You should be proud of her, not trying to cut her down by doubting her."

The Fairy Mage gave the older mage's shoulder a light squeeze before heading into the kitchen to see what for food the leader of her team had, beckoning Freed to come help her knowing the Rune Mage was a much better cook than she was.

Left to stew in his own turmoil, Laxus ran his hands heavily down his face as he leaned forward on his knees, a barely there smirk crossed his lips as he looked at the cracks in his inch and half thick glass tabletop, his voice a low chuckle, "She's definitely not the same little girl I found Crocus, that's for sure."

xXx

Bickslow rarely ever came out on the balcony attached to his bedroom at the Lightning Slayer's house, night or day, he just brought the women he managed to land at the bar or club here before sending them away and sleeping off his hangover. His first time being out on the balcony in the middle of the afternoon wasn't exactly the way he pictured it; Lucy curled up in his lap while she cried, his ass going numb from thin cushion over the metal of the lounger, flashing between stifling heat and too chilly with the gusts of Mid-Spring wind. No, this was definitely not how he pictured this.

Pulling her trembling frame from his chest so he could look down into her watery amber orbs, he realized she had no idea where he was looking with his visor on, so with a barely restrained groan, he took a moment to unbuckle the thing and set it on the lounger in front of them. Lifting her chin gently to look into his deep red wine pools, her breathing hitched when she noticed his face was unobstructed by the piece of metal perfectly molded to his face, immediately raising a dainty hand to trace the tattoo in easy, soothing strokes. His voice was rich and eased her tension as he spoke, his eyes closing to lean against her forehead, forcing her hand to drop onto his jean covered thigh, "I know this isn't what you want to hear, but he's the only family you have just like you're the only family he has. As much as I respect Makarov as my Master, he didn't have the time to give Laxus a real grandfather and that left him...bitter, left to meet an impossible standard without any guidance and it tore him up. When the guild split and we went to Blue Pegasus, he made sure he knew where you were. He's not a man to admit when he's scared," opening his eyes to make she heard him, understood what he was saying as he looked into her golden orbs, still shining with unshed tears but looking up at him with an unwavering gaze that excited him and unnerved him at the same time, "and he is petrified of losing you, Lucy. I can't even imagine how you date people he doesn't like because, believe it or not, he actually does like me and he's still wigging the fuck out over us dating. I'm not saying you should go down there and roll over, I'm just trying to give you another perspective to think about."

With a sniffle and a small nod, the little blonde beauty wrapped her arms around his neck in a tight embrace, kneeling between his open legs before breathing out, hoarse from her tears but genuine, "Thank you so much, Bickslow." His arms wound around her body with an easy smile on his face, growing wider as her felt her lithe fingers run through his hair.

After a few minutes of just listening to the Seith Mages ridiculous and terrible whispered jokes into her ear as if he were telling her secrets instead of really bad puns, she pulled back, tears dried and a beaming smile quirked the corner of her lip up. A renewed sense of determination was lacing through her words as she unknotted his shirt to tuck it loosely in the waist in the front letting the hem fall over the curves of her back before cupping his tanned, handsome face, "Let's head back down there and fix this. I don't want him to do something rash because I can't get over my own self-righteous anger."

Leaning a hairsbreadth from her lips, causing the Celestial Mage's golden eyes to dip to his own lips, smirk tilting them into an easy grin as he reached around her to grab his visor sitting just behind her, his hand skimming over the outside of her jean clad thigh, before leaning back to affix the custom metal piece back in place.

Narrowing her eyes playfully at the still sitting mage as she stood, her voice was light and airy, much more suiting than her bogged down tone from before, "Fucking tease...," before opening the door to his bedroom and slipping in so she could try her best to not let her anger and frustration get the better of her.


	5. Step Five: Mind the Gap

The moment she stepped into Laxus' dining room and saw his usually proud frame hunched over and leaning against his banister to stare out over Evergreen's garden of impeccable topiary arrangements and creeping Morning Glory through the glass, all the fight seeped from her body. She knew that her older brother had a serious problem with expressing himself, especially when emotions and feelings were involved. The little blonde had thought she finally made it through to him that he didn't have to be the strongest mage in Fiore and future guild master of Fairy Tail when he was with her; he could just be himself and she absolutely adored when he actually let himself relax. He was all quick-sarcasm and blunt observation, and it was the most refreshing change of pace to not have someone sugar-coat what they said or pushed her protectively to the side to let the 'big boys' take care of it. She didn't resent anyone for wanting to keep her safe; she just didn't want them to sideline her because they thought she was incapable of holding her own.

So when Laxus went out of his way to find her while she was in Crocus on an assignment from Sorcerer Weekly, she immediately jumped on the opportunity to have him train her. Thankfully Blue Pegasus was just to the outskirts of the bustling capital and Jason was totally cool with her getting an apartment in the city while she completed her assignments which allowed her to train rigorously with the Lightning Dragon Slayer early every morning on her physical strength and again at night to improve her senses.

She remembered the first time she landed a hit on the powerhouse and the first time she brought him down with fondness. Lucy had learned to use stealth and strategy to her advantage instead of straight magic output from Bickslow and Freed. She learned to wait until the most opportune moment to strike from Evergreen and to have confidence in herself from every single lesson they gave her. Now that she really thought about it, she got more from her short time with the Thunder God Tribe than she did with Team Natsu as far as actual progress with her magic goes. Natsu, Gray and Erza would always be home to her though. They were the first to give her a real place and a real family after years of solitude and seclusion and she would always be thankful for that day in Hargeon and for Natsu for bringing her to Fairy Tail, but she wanted to be more than just the Light of Fairy Tail; more than just a busty blonde who can't stay out of trouble and the Raijinshu and Laxus did that for her.

Moving from where she had been standing behind the french doors in his dining room, she quickly made her way to the space to his right to fold her arms on top of the railing to look out over her yard without looking up at him.

When their easy silence mingled with the typical woodsy noises from the tall pines that surrounded his house, Lucy bumped the hulking blonde's arm with her elbow. She could feel his steel-blue gaze on her profile as she tried to hide her smile by biting her lip.

Before she had really registered his movement, she was being wrapped into a bear hug. After a very short moment of shock, she settled into the embrace easily. A warm smile spread across her lips as she pressed her cheek into the smooth silk of his dress shirt as his chest rumbled from the deep bass of his apologetic voice, "This is hard for me and I know I'm not handling it well but Bix and I had it out this morning. While he failed to mention why you had one of the babies and why you are wearing his shirt, he assured me that you two didn't..."

Pulling back at her brother's uncharacteristic hesitation, she chuckled before providing him with the words he couldn't say, "Have sex?," pulling the blushing Slayer's cheeks with a teasing, patronizing look on her face, her voice half a coo, "Aww! That's so sweet that big, bad dragon known for his love-em-and-leave-em ways can't even say the word sex. Would you prefer made love? Did the nasty? danced the horizontal tango? Oooo, how about fucked?"

His face attempted to form a scowl but the accompanying glare was the only thing that translated through her ministrations and even that wasn't so scary while the small woman tugged at his face like a child. At the last suggestion she offered, he grabbed her wrists from his face before gritting through his clenched jaw, "Shut up, woman. I really don't want to think about it at all since Bix always felt the need to tell me, in detail, about his conquests. I have a very good mental picture of how things go when it comes to him and that's just not something I ever wanted to have to apply to you."

Her brows furrowed as she spoke earnestly, "So this whole ridiculous display is because you know how good Bickslow is in bed."

With a tired sigh, Laxus rolled his eyes as he crossed his arms over his chest, "Not even close, Blondie."

Her golden eyes rolled in response, "You don't really have the final word when it comes to who I choose to spend my time with but you should be happy. I really like him and it's not like we are rushing into anything. You act like we haven't known each other for years and that I didn't have any clue about his past. I'm not under any kind of delusion that this will be an easy transition for any of us, especially now that we are all going to be pretty much in each other's faces for the foreseeable future."

Running his hand through his hair as he turned to lean his butt against the railing, "Yeah, this ought'a be interesting. Ever will be happy she's not the only girl with three men for it though."

When he turned to look back down at his sister, she had her hands behind her back and she was smiling up at him with that particular smile that said she was looking for something specific from him. A smile he hated because she never gave him any hints as to what it meant to get from him and he almost always was left to fumble through all the things that could possibly on the little Celestial Mage's mind. His voice came through a lot less even than he wanted to as one of her brows cocked up, "Was there something else you needed, Blondie?"

"Mmmhmm," was all she answered with as she stared up into his eyes.

"You know I hate when you do this to me..."

She just continued to look at him, grin firmly affixed on her lips.

It hit him like brick to the face when he realized she wanted a real apology; the words 'I am sorry' needed to come from his lips before she would quit with the unnerving staring and grinning she was so effortlessly pinning him with. So with a low grumble, he went through the motions of a 'real apology' deemed by the little blonde. He turned to look into her eyes, pointedly ducking down to her level as he put a heavy hand on her head since she required physical contact for an apology to be real as he regurgitated her words from the beginning of their relationship, his voice mechanical and low, "I am sorry for being an insensitive jerk and I hope you can find it in your very large heart to forgive me."

As she pressed an easy kiss to his forehead, his stormy eyes rolled, he voice bubbly and bright, "Oh, of course darling brother of mine, all is forgiven." She took pause to see his little half smirk before explaining, "And I didn't mean to take Muu this morning. He just kind of followed me out when I scaled the fence in the backyard. I think he was genuinely concerned for Bickslow's safety when you came to the door." Sensing the growing rage coming from the Lightning Slayer, she poked a finger into his chest, "Not that you need to know, but we actually just talked until it got too late and I didn't want to walk home. I borrowed a shirt to sleep in because I don't have my keys on me and we went to sleep." Trailing off as she looked at the purple and yellow flowers, "It was actually really nice. Probably the best date I've ever been on."

His voice had a sharp edge as he narrowed his eyes towards the doors of his house, "We? Where exactly did you sleep?"

The Lightning Slayer completely missed the airy sigh as she leaned back on the railing herself, "He was such a gentleman, Laxus. Though I definitely wouldn't have pegged him for a cuddler-"

"On second thought? Nope. This is not what I signed up for. I already threatened him this morning so all you have to tell me if when he fucks up so I can take care of it," he rumbled as his arms folding back over his chest, but not before he noticed the dreamy look in her eye and he relented, somewhat kinder, "But I'm happy if you're happy, Blondie."

Rewarding him with a beaming toothy smile, her voice was back to its usual lilt as she weaseled her arm through his bent elbow as they made their way back into the house, "You'll be the first to know if he does anything, Spark Plug," shooting a glance at Laxus' cracked dining table before her shoulders shrunk and a sheepish smile took her lips, "Sorry about the table by the way."

With a nonchalance she should have assumed would come from the behemoth blonde, he shrugged before the pair headed into the kitchen where Freed was cooking something that smelled like heaven on a stick. Laxus quickly took the stool next to Bickslow as Lucy bounced over to the Rune Mage to ask if he needed any help, which he quickly assigned her to cutting onions since the he despised them, before the dragon leaned over to the laughing Seith Mage to his left, his voice only loud enough for the blunette to hear, "Remember what I said about her staying in your bed?"

The abrupt halt of his laughter caused the rest of the room to stare at Bickslow's half opened mouth as Laxus smirked to himself, completely satisfied with his best friend's reaction before asking Lucy to grab he and Bickslow a beer from the fridge.

The five fell into an easy lull of conversation, laughter breaking through often through the whole of dinner before they each went their separate ways to prepare for the long journey to Joya.

xXx

Four days later, Lucy was making her way behind Laxus and Bickslow, dressed in their usual get-ups, into the private cabin of the train that was to take them to Hargeon where they would board The Crown Jewel and make their way towards Minstrel. Most of the week before was filled with easy back and forth between the two blondes as they coordinated the semantics of meeting and getting to the port town. At the last goodbye at the guild, Gramps had given both Lucy and Laxus communication lacrimas to stay in touch before sending them off and so the little blonde could keep in contact with her team since they weren't back from their respective jobs yet.

She watched as the two men settled next to each other on one side of cabin before she realized she left her bag on the bench at the station. Her eyes turned owlish as she turned towards the attendant who was holding her over the shoulder satchel with a death grip as he questioned the other passengers.

Quickly making her way over to the man who probably stood maybe a few inches over her head, her voice was bright as she smiled at him, "Oh thank goodness. I was worried I'd have to search for my bag and miss the train, but it seems you've prevented that. Thank you so much."

She expected the attendant, with his slicked back black hair and grimy smile, to hand her the bag and send her back to her seat but instead, his hazel eyes glinted with something darker as he took in her thigh high brown boots, tight black miniskirt, billowy thin cream off-the shoulder cropped top and her hair piled in two messy buns at the top of her head, secured by two chopsticks Leo had given her for her birthday. As he leered at her, his voice was arrogant, "You should keep better track of your things. It's a good thing I happened to pass it on my way here, but no worries there. Maybe you could give me something in return for helping a pretty thing like you out."

Putting a hand on her hip as her voice hardened, "Maybe you could just give me my bag and walk away with a warm, fuzzy feeling in your chest for doing the decent thing."

Stepping closer to the curvy blonde, his hand came up to trail the backs of his knuckles down her face, "And waste this perfect meet-cute? I don't think so, sweetheart."

Lucy took a step back from the attendant before he could make contact while she wrenched her bag from his grip, seeming to have surprised the man with her strength before she growled out, "Thank you for getting my bag back to me," and turning back down the walkway towards her team.

Before she had made it two steps, the lecherous man had grabbed her arm to pull her back into his body, only to be greeted instead by Lucy's small closed fist. Connecting in a perfect swing with thr fragile cartilidge his nose before she hissed, "Maybe you should think twice before you go grabbing women who are clearly not interested, sweetheart," and left the little black haired man to nurse his gushing face as she stomped back to the cabin and wiggled her way to sit between the two towering men with her arms crossed firmly over her chest, grumbling under her breath as she did so.

Her irritation earned disbelieving stares from the rest of the cabin that had settled into an easy silence, interrupting the noises coming from Ever's magazine and Freed's book as they turned the pages and Bickslow's soft chattering to his babies before Laxus grunted out, "What's got you so worked up?"

She threw her arms out as she burst incredulously, "That guy had some nerve trying a move like that! I told him to just give me my bag and walk away but no, he had to grab me and I had every right to hit that creep." Her arms crossed back over her chest as she huffed out, "He should be happy all I did was break his nose."

Laxus gave her another grunt of acknowledgment as the train lerched forward and he pulled his headphones over his ears to drown out the train so he could sleep through the whole ride.

The Rune Mage across from her gave an easy nod as his smooth voice filled the little space, "It would be safe to assume you are unharmed, Lucy?"

Granting the sweet man a wide smile, she waved him off, the lilt of her voice light and airy, "Yeah, I'm fine. He was just a handsy jerk who picked the wrong girl to mess with. Hopefully he'll have learned a lesson when it comes to coming onto uninterested women instead of just letting them go." Mumbling under her breath as Freed went back to reading his book, "Guy wasn't even remotely close to being my type..."

That piqued the Seith Mage's interest. His deep, rich voice was bright as he baited the little blonde, "And just what is your type, Kitten?"

Completely missing his flirtatious tone and her mind still on the creepy steward, she answered in a huff, "Definitely not short men who lack both muscle tone and color with greasy black hair and no manners."

While that was not what he was expecting, he had to guess that he had a pretty good chance since he literally towered over her, had a very nice mix of bulk and lean muscle, had a natural deep tan and his unruly blue hair was far from greasy, even after being in his helmet. Before he could make his retort, she had pulled out a little paperback novel and was completely engrossed in the words so he settled with watching the landscape go by, his hand on her thigh in an effort to both touch the irresistible woman next to him and to spread himself across the space of the train as he other hand moved behind his head as a makeshift pillow.

Another hour or so passed before Evergreen broke the silence with a huff. Closing the magazine she had been using as a cover so she could watch Lucy and Bickslow, her voice coming out abrupt and almost angry, "So what is the deal with you two?"

The pair shared a look at the Fairy Mage's outburst before Lucy answered cautiously, Mimi and Momo on each of her shoulders while Muu stopped his playful twirling to sit himself between her golden buns, "What do mean by that, Ever?"

After a flippant hand gesture motioning between the two and an eye roll later, she elaborated, "I mean, these three may be fine with not addressing the obvious thing between you two, but I am not." Taking a minute to fix the hem of her short green dress before pushing her glasses up, "Which by the way, I am a huge fan of whatever is happening. If anyone is going to tame the wild man, it's going to be you, Lucy."

Bickslow's hearty laughter was at complete odds with the confusion that twisted the little blonde's face as she repeated quietly, more to herself than anyone in the cabin, "Tame the wild man? What does that mean?"

As if her could sense her turmoil, the blunette mage leaned towards her to clarify, "Medusa thinks that because you're a shining pillar of society, you'll keep me in check in public." Giving the glaring woman across from him a playful smile before he continued, "She thinks I live to embarrass her in public," finishing with his very signature tongue loll.

Without hesitation, the brunette shrieked out of frustration, "Because you do it every chance you get, Bickslow!"

"I do not," he soothed the irate huffing woman.

"What about the time you told the owner of the hotel I was a 'lady of the night' and you made lewd noises from our room the whole night? I had random people coming up to me the whole week were on that job handing me hotel keys and asking my rates!"

Lacing his fingers behind his helmet as his face took a reminiscent far off look, "That was an excellent week for me."

Throwing her hands up before crossing them over her chest, her voice seething with aggravation as she looked to Lucy, who was trying to keep her own giggles in check, "On second thought? Save yourself the trouble and go on a date with a nice guy like Freed."

A slow smile spread across the green haired mage's face as the Seith Mage burst into laughter once again at her unknowing words. When his laughter calmed enough for him to speak, he choked out, "Who do you think directed them to you while I was with the boss?"

The Celestial Mage couldn't hold in her own peals of melodic laughter as Ever whipped out her fan and started berating the Rune Mage who was curled over his book protectively as he calmly spoke, only irritating the brunette further, "They simply asked if you were the woman residing in the room where all the commotion was coming from, which technically, you were."

"I can't believe you were in on it! You traitor!"

As the two continued their spat, the Seith Mage leaned back towards the giggling woman to his right, "I hope you're ready for all this insanity."

With a shake of her head, Lucy spoke easily, "I'm the keeper for Team Natsu," gesturing at the arguing coming from across from the pair, "this is nothing."

Giving her a sly smile as his rich baritone sent shivers down her back straight to her core, "That kind of confidence can get you into trouble, Kitten."

"Trouble comes to me regardless of my level of confidence," she spoke absently as the little blonde coaxed Mama down from his shoulder.

xXx

When they finally made their way from the station towards the dock, Lucy and Evergreen having the time of their lives gossiping about the rest of their nakama's potential love lives before they stopped dead in the middle of the street at the sheer size of the boat in the harbor that had 'The Crown Jewel' splayed across the stern in beautiful golden script.

As if they were dreaming and didn't want to wake up, the Fairy Mage leaned over to her blonde partner to whisper in disbelief as she pointed to the massive cruise liner, "Is that the boat that's taking us to Roze?"

Mirroring her actions, Lucy spoke in a reverent breathy sighs, "You see it too?"

Before they could make their way towards the harbor keeper, Laxus barreled through them to make a beeline for the older man to figure out why the boat they were supposed to be boarding in five minutes was anchored out in the bay instead of being at the dock.

Bickslow's playful tone rang out as he threw an arm over each of the recovering ladies shoulders, "I've always wanted to go on a cruise. This should be a blast."

The brunette pulled his arm off her with a narrowed glare before smiling at Lucy, her voice excited, "It's a good thing Virgo was okay with us storing all our things for the trip or I would have felt bad about packing every bathing suit I owned. I hope there is a pool for me to soak up some sun."

The Seith Mage cut off the little blondes response as he grinned down at her and lifting his visor just enough to shoot her a wink, "Any excuse to see you in a bikini, Starlight," before his tongue lolled from his mouth.

Laxus' baritone interrupted them before she could tease the towering mage beside her, earning a huff of a sigh at being talked over for a second time in a row before the slayer continued, completely unfazed, "So we have to take a smaller boat to get to The Crown Jewel and then we will be on our way. Apparently we are joining the tail-end of a cruise from Midi that is making a special stop here just to pick us up, which fills me with confidence as to the severity of this top secret diplomatic mission. So let's just get this started."

As the group made their way to the end of the dock where a smaller boat was waiting to take them to their home away from homes, a handsome, deeply tanned blonde attendant in a crisp, white uniform greeted them with a bright grin, "Good afternoon, mages of Fairy Tail. My name is Jabari and I'll be your personal attendant for the entirety of your stay on with us."

Laxus' sarcasm was dripping from his words as he looked over the tall, muscled man, "This cruise comes with a babysitter. This job is just full of surprises," as he crossed over the makeshift bridge that connected the dock to the boat and down into the boat with ease.

Lucy quickly walked over to the edge, her voice cheery, "Good afternoon, Jabari. Thank you for coming out of your way to pick us up. I feel a little badly you have to make a special stop," as she took his offered hand to help her down into the boat with an easy smile.

His bright cerulean eyes shined as he spoke, "You must be Miss Heartfilia. It's a pleasure to meet you and please, mind the gap. We wouldn't want you to take a dip in the harbor, now would we?," with an easy laugh as she stumbled over the wobbly piece of metal before leading her to a one of the cushioned benches as she asked question after question about The Crown Jewel and Joya, which the blue-eyed blonde haired man was more than eager to answer for the beautiful woman at his side.

Freed's voice was low and teasing as he spoke to the Seith Mage watching the interaction very closely, "Looks like you'll have some competition for Lucy's attention, Bickslow."

One of the Seith Mage's problems with relationships was his uncontrollable bouts of jealousy, which is another reason why he avoided them at all costs and he knew Lucy would be the ultimate test of this because one, they technically weren't in a relationship and two, she literally pulled people to her like a magnet and she had absolutely no clue of the affect she had on everyone around her. So with a false bravado and a too enthusiastic pat on the back, Bickslow grinned to his teammate, "I'll just send in the babies and she'll be hypnotized, my friend," before making his way onto the boat and taking the spot next to the Lightning Dragon.

After a few minutes of waiting for one of the trade ships to dock, the little blonde had run out of questions for the attendant and was looking over the harbor fondly when the slight downturn of the corners of her favorite knightly mage's lips caught her eye.

With a curious tilt of her head as her brows furrowed, his head turned away from her as if to look at the cruiser that would be their home for next three weeks with his arms crossed over his chest. Narrowing her amber eyes at his obvious annoyance with something she was completely ignorant of, she gave Jabari a polite smile before crossing the deck of the smaller boat, her arms behind her back unintentionally pushing her chest out towards him as she purred out, "Do you mind if I take this seat?" She could see the smirk that quirked the corner of her fellow blondes lip at her question from her peripherals as she waited for Bickslow to answer.

His lips quickly turned into a sly smile as he leaned back on the bench with his arms wide and answered the blonde beauty with his own question, "You lookin' to take up the best seat in the house, Kitten?"

Her melodic laughter made his grin turn genuine as she tucked herself next to him and placed a dainty hand on his thigh, her voice light, "As much as I'd like to, I don't really want to go for a swim and you don't want to get electrocuted."

The deep chuckle that sounded from the other side of Bickslow made the buxom woman's laugh to melt into peals of belly laughter as he rumbled out, "Good answer, little sister."


	6. Step Six: Shut it Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So in this chapter, I use original characters from another extremely talented writer, Desna. Her work is downright amazing and here is the link to her profile on fanfiction: https://www.fanfiction.net/u/8458589/Desna   
> Seriously, read all of the stories. They are so frickity frack snickety snacking good.

Lucy rubbed the slayer's back in an attempt to ease the severity of his sickness as The Crown Jewel took off until the pills she had asked Porlyusica to make for her brother so he wasn't completely miserable for the entirety of the trip. His low barely heard purrs at her ministrations made a small smile spread across her lips as the pair watched Hargeon disappear from view slowly. Freed had went with Jabari when the attendant offered the group a tour of the crew restricted areas while Bickslow and Ever went hunting for the adult only pool the moment Virgo had brought their things from the Spirit World.

After an hour of just listening to the water with Laxus, he gave her temple a kiss in a rare show of emotion before letting her know he felt stable enough to at least try and find some food. She let him know she was probably just going to stay out on the deck and people watch. The little blonde knew he knew how much she loved the water, but ever since Aquarius, she just couldn't help the melancholy that seemed to seep into her bones when she was around it. The longer she stayed there just listening to the waves as they tumbled and folded on each other, the more her sadness faded into more of a somber remembrance as the sun started to set in a vibrant display of bright oranges, pinks and just the tiniest hints of purple weaving through with a vividness that pulled her from within herself as she thought of her team and odd is was going to be to be without them for so long.

"Now what's a gorgeous woman like you doing all by yourself," a deep, unfamiliar voice sounded from beside her.

With a roll of her amber eyes, she didn't even look at the stranger before she scoffed, "I can assure you I'm not alone, sweetheart."

Completely unfazed by her cold demeanor, he playfully drawled with a voice like silk over her senses, "You seem pretty lonesome to me and that's just sinful."

Calling her Earthen King spirit to her side mentally, her voice was still uninterested but edged on amusement as she smirked over the water with her elbows firm on the railing, "Would you look at that? Seems I'm no longer sinfully alone so you can work on your next good deed-" her thoughts stalled as she looked up into the most mesmerizing deep blue eyes she's ever seen in her life. The gold flecks dancing in them with the same mirth that pulled his downright delectable lips into a knowing smirk. She couldn't help but feel something familiar about the tall, impeccably built man dressed in a pair of khaki shorts and an unbuttoned short sleeve printed shirt with faded yellow flowers. She couldn't help but notice that his tanned chest compared to the sheer muscle mass of Laxus as she swallowed harshly.

"So the beautiful blonde is a Celestial mage," he winked down at her before continuing, "I knew there was something about you I liked."

The tall, lean brunette man on her left rolled his blood red eyes as his voice took a bored air to it, "I'm sure it wasn't her killer curves or the fact that the wind blows her skirt up to give you a free peak at her ass."

Smacking the spirits chest as she blushed, desperately trying to hold her skirt down and pummel him at the same time, her voice vivid with irritation, "Why wouldn't you tell me that before just now? I've been out on the deck for hours! Who knows how many people took part on my little peep show!"

Pulling her free hand in his as he pressed it to his chest and bowed his head, his voice serious but the shit-eating grin on his face contradicted his heart-felt words, "My apologies, Princess. Nix wouldn't let any of us through. Seems he's taken a liking to the little slip of red between your legs."

With a sudden poof of gold, a man built similarly to the mystery blue-eyed stranger, who was now chuckling behind her, appeared before her. He was barefoot and only wore a pair a low slung, black leather pants, leaving the rest of his golden skin exposed, his short unruly hair was a wild blend of reds and oranges with a single streak of blue standing out over his right eye. Sensing his mistress' ire, he immediately hid behind Cepheus, his voice apologetic, "Don't be mad at me, Princess! It's not my fault you wear those hypnotizing lacy thongs. I'm a man damn it, I can only take so much."

Trying to grab the tricksy fire spirit from around Cepheus' lean body with her hands on either side of the regal man's chest, her voice was muffled into the fabric of his deep emerald green coat as her cheek squished against him, "Let's see how long you stay a man when I get my hands on you, Phoenix...just hold...still, you little..."

Suddenly, she was being lifted away by strong, deeply tanned arms wrapping around her waist before being thrown over a bare shoulder. "We haven't even left Fioran waters and you're already causing trouble," the deep baritone of her Sea Serpent spirit filled her ears as she huffed and blew her stray hair out of her face, her elbow leaned on his shoulder as she propped her head up in her palm.

"I'm not causing trouble," she huffed before twisting to point to the smirking fire spirit who had a completely unimpeded view of her ass from beneath her little skirt with the way Cetus was holding her, "He is! Wait a minute...," pulling the green-haired spirits long ponytail, her voice commanding, "Put me down Cetus! That little perv is looking up my skirt again. I can feel his lecherous eyes on my body."

A moment later, Virgo and Loke both came out to retrieve her unruly spirits. The pinkette's tone even as she bowed to the blonde, "My apologies, Princess. I should have been keeping better track of them. Will I be punished for my error?" Her eyes lighting up with hope as she raised from her bow.

Elbowing the chuckling man holding her hostage until he set her back down. She wrapped the woman in a bear hug of gratitude, breathing out as she pulled back from the smiling maid, "How about you punish those three as your punishment?"

A chorus of groans sounded from behind the Maiden spirit as her smile turned devious, "Thank you. We'll be taking our leave now if that was all."

The Celestial Mage's lips split into a brilliant smile as she chirped, "That's it! Have fun! Be sure to make Nix's punishment worse than Ceph and Cetus'!," as she waved her spirits away before her eyes turned owlish as she heard deep chuckles from behind her. Remembering the reason she called Cepheus out in the first place, she turned towards the handsome stranger slowly as she rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly, "I uh...sorry about that," unable to help the little cringe that emerged.

"Don't be. I've never heard of a Celestial Mage that can hold five gates open at once so count me impressed, Princess," his easy smile settled her nerves as he leaned against the rail casually, exposing more of his incredible body as his shirt fell away.

"Technically, I was only holding three gates open. Virgo and Loke both came out of their own accord," mumbling under her breath with the barest hints of irritation mingling with the blatant adoration she felt as she talked about her spirits, "They all like to pop out whenever they deem necessary."

She watched the blue of his eyes widen, before asking earnestly, "You let your spirits have the freedom to come out of their own will?"

"Of course," she said with a shrug, "Plus, I usually really like the company when they aren't being a bunch of perverts. Even some of my female spirits are like that though. I made the mistake of letting Cetus' little sister bathe with me one night and I spent most of the time trying to keep her from groping my boobs instead of relaxing."

Before her tall, dark and charming stranger could remark on any of the very juicy information she just dropped on him, Jabari interrupted, "My apologies but your brother is looking for you, Miss Lucy. He said it was urgent and to find you immediately."

Within an instant, he watched her expression change from a casual smile to that of genuine concern before she put a hand on his forearm, her voice full of sincerity as she granted him a small smile, "It was really nice meeting you. Maybe we'll run into each other again."

"I'll be sure to make it happen, Princess," was his easy response as he sent her a shiver-inducing smile that made her both uncomfortable and excited all in one go before she let Jabari lead her back to their suite to see what was wrong with Laxus.

When she stepped into the suite, her voice called out laced with apprehension, "Laxus? What's wrong..." adding quietly as she made her way into the pitch black room, not knowing where any of the light switches were as she ran her fingers along the wall, "and where the hell are you?"

"Blondie?"

Seeing a sliver of light coming from a crack in the bedroom, she made her way over to the door, "Jabari said you needed to see me right away- OH MY GODS!" Her hand immediately came up to cover her eyes as she walked in on the Lightning Mage balls deep in a pretty brunette bent over the couch in the master bedroom before splitting her fingers and adding playfully through her laughter, "Way to go, big bro. She's hot."

"Get the fuck out, Lu!," was all he got out before she pulled the door shut and quickly made her way back out of the room to find something to keep her occupied until her brother wasn't so busy in the suite as she snickered her way down the halls.

XxXxXxX

"Wait wait wait, you actually walked in on him fucking that brunette? Gods, that is priceless," the Seith mage cackled from across the table that also held the two females of his team.

Giving the blunette a playful glare from over her strawberry daiquiri, she took the fresh fruit and pressed it to her lips before taking a bite of the juicy berry, her tongue darting out to lick the juice from her pouty bottom lip before she answered, "Balls deep, Bix. He was very much fucking the brunette when I walked in. Nice move using Jabari to get me. Although your timing could have been better..." she trailed off aimlessly.

Though he changed from his layers into a pair of tight red swim trunks, he still had to keep his visor on until they reached the private yacht in Roze, so she missed both the hungry look in his eyes as he watched her mouth, trying his best to keep from getting hard in the thin material of his shorts before his hunger turned to confusion at her last statement. Before he could ask her what she meant, Ever asked the blonde excitedly, "There are quite a few night clubs aboard this dream boat and one of them is having a karaoke night tomorrow. It would be so much fun if you wanted to-"

"Yes! Absolutely, yes. I love karaoke," she cut the woman off for no other reason than her overwhelming adoration of getting drunk and singing in front of her fellow drunks. She watched the sweet smile spread across the Fairy Mage's face before she turned to the babies, her voice quiet like she was telling them a secret, "Can I count on my amazing dancers to help me out?"

Their bright chirping as they tumbled and nuzzled the radiant blonde pulled a genuine smile from his lips. He barely registered her words as he watched her get up and head into the changing rooms, every single one of his babies in tow as she chattered to them.

Ever's deep brown eyes danced with revenge as she checked her perfectly manicured nails, her voice flippant as she did, "Lulu tells me she had a run in with a 'tall, dark and charming' stranger before your little joke interrupted, Bix. I don't know whether to commend your impeccable timing or laugh at the jealousy I know is shining in those red eyes of yours behind your visor so all I'm going to say is karma can be a cruel bitch, just like me," she finished with an evil smirk as she heard his jaw crack at the pressure he was putting on it to keep from giving away any more than he already had.

He couldn't muster the bravado he needed to mask his obviously jealous inquiry, so he just ran a hand over his mouth before leaning on his elbows, his voice low, "What else she say about this dude?"

"Oh, honey, like I'd tell you anything more than that," she spoke sweetly as she patted his arm, her eyes still glinting with the distinct flames of revenge.

As if on cue, Lucy came back out, her beautiful melodic voice catching his attention as he looked up to take in the sight of the buxom Celestial beauty in the tiniest sapphire blue triangle string bikini he's ever seen and he's seen some racy bathing suits in his life. Two gold stars flanked just offset of where her nipples were pressing through and at closer inspection, he could have swore he saw what could only be piercings through them before she sat her bag down on the chair she abandoned before she left to change, her voice heavy with smug satisfaction when she saw his jaw drop, "See something you like, Bixy?"

Before he could blink away his awe, she called Plue out and made her way towards the pool to enjoy the crystal clear water of the lazy river that connected many of the pools on the ship, her hips swaying in mesmerizing motions that captivated the Seith Mage.

"Mavis, that woman is a heaven send. I've never seen you this riled up over anyone so I'll give you this one, ONE, helpful hint, whoever her mysterious handsome man is, he wants to see her again. I'd put money on that happening before this week is over," Ever gave his shoulder a light squeeze before laying out on one of the loungers to get some serious tan before the luxuries of the cruiser are behind them and she has to suffer through cold stream baths until they get over the mountain range into the heart of Joya.

XxXxXxX

Both Ever and Lucy spent most of the day hopping from shop to shop after a very awkward breakfast for the Dragon slayer, amusing for the rest of their crew as both Bickslow and his little sister picked endlessly at him for being caught quite literally with his pants down.

When the two ladies found themselves in a little boutique full of random oddities, her brunette partner in crime practically melted at the collection of beautifully made vintage fans, Lucy made her way over to the glass case full of everything from belt buckles to jewelry to unique knives and daggers. Her bright honey eyes landed on a set of deadly obsidian blades that she just knew Erza would love.

Calling to the little balding man from further down the counter, she asked if she could take a closer look at the set and his warm hazel eyes crinkled as he smiled at her and gave a quick nod, laying the red velvet they were resting on out across the glass for her to look over. She could only assume he was so casual about leaving them with her as he helped another customer was because they were on a ship out in the middle of a very large body of water with nowhere to escape to. With a shrug, she went back to her careful assessment of the twin daggers. The shape reminded her of the Requip Mage's Purgatory Armor set with its deadly spikes and black blades. The hilts were a lighter grey metal with ruby accents before the ends of the hilts curved down in sharp points that looked almost as sharp as the opposite end. She could feel the magic emanating from the weapons but she wasn't familiar with the feel of this particular magic. Calling Grampa Crux out, she asked her sagely spirit if he could identify the daggers and their magical origins before he disappeared back to the Spirit World until he found something helpful for the blonde. She went back to perusing the display case, standing on her toes to look at a pair of little peacock earrings.

She didn't have to wait very long before her spirit popped back out and helpfully supplied her with all the information she needed, "The name of the obsidian daggers are Fukushu no Dira, Miss Lucy. It means revenge dealers and as far as the records of their existence go, no one has ever been able to wield them successfully."

Thanking her spirit, she dismissed him before musing out loud, "Erza will absolutely love them."

"Any mage worth a damn would love them, sugar. The question is whether or not they could handle the magic," a voice called from right behind her.

She hadn't meant to but her gut reaction was to swing when some unidentified voice slithered over her body, especially when it came way too close for comfort and she was half bent over a counter with her ass on display. Thankfully, the young raven haired man had stepped back before she could land the punch to his jaw, but he hadn't expected the little blonde to follow her swing with a jab to his stomach that landed just high enough to make him lose his breath. He definitely didn't peg the sexy little thing that filled out her short blue summer dress in all the right ways with her waist long golden hair and easy smile, to be a punch first ask questions later type and when he spotted her admiring a set of very well-made enchanted daggers instead of the menial bobbles that filled the little curio shop, his interest was piqued. The fact that her toned legs lead up to one of the nicest asses he's ever seen was a definite bonus.

Her panicked flittering as her arm immediately wrapped around his back when he bent over to try to catch his breath would have made him laugh if he wasn't still trying to take in a breath, her babbling made him grin despite her assault, "Mavis, I am so sorry! I didn't mean to...well, I can't say I didn't mean to punch you because I did but I wasn't really thinking beyond too close male coming from behind. So I stand firm that this was your fault for creeping up on me. You should make some noise or something before you slither up behind a woman like that. I could have stabbed you! Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! At least it was only a little punch to the solar plexus and not that..." she continued to rub his back re-assuredly before she realized he was laughing at her.

Taking a step back, she crossed her arms over her chest, only succeeding in pushing her more than ample breasts further on display as she glared at her would-be attacker, her voice trying to portray annoyance but she couldn't hide the dark blush that spread from her face down over her chest, "Ugh, why don't you go prey on some other vacationer," before turning back around and waving the portly man to pay for the weapon set.

When the spitfire blonde summoned a pink haired woman in a maid's outfit to keep the daggers for her, he noticed the pink guild mark on her hand before smirking. This was going to be fun if she was who he thought she was.

Fading in the background, his wine pools kept watch of the blonde as she gushed to her brunette friend about her newly acquired gift before they made their way out of shops and back up to the VIP suites. Staying in the shadows, he slipped in behind the ladies and was less than surprised to see his older brother doing handstands freely. What did surprise him, was the blonde's immediate challenge, her words equal parts playful and suggestive as she tilted her head upside down to look in his eyes since he wasn't wearing his visor for once, "Let's see who can keep it up the longest, Bixy," before she pulled her dress off without hesitation, leaving her in a tiny blue bikini.

Landing easily back on his feet, he crossed his arms over his broad chest as his deep red orbs danced with excitement at her challenge, "You're on, Kitten. What do I get when I win?"

Raising a brow at his confidence, she quipped back, "If you win, I'll let you pick three songs tonight. Any songs you want, but if I win, I get to pick three songs for you. Deal?"

His brothers tongue lolled from his mouth right after he agreed to her demands.

Either this woman was incredibly talented or insane and no matter which she actually was, Vander was dying to watch the outcome.

Both mages steadied themselves into handstands facing each other as Ever leaned against the back of the couch to watch. If anyone was going to beat the acrobat at his own game, it was going to be Lucy; not because she was better but because she could do the one thing no one else could, unbalance the Seith Mage.

Her voice was airy and light as she effortlessly walked a circle, "Hey Bixy, want to see what Cetus taught me?"

The mohawked man was trying desperately to avoid looking at the bombshell as gravity took effect on her massive chest but the moment she called to him, his gaze snapped to her body clad in only her little bikini from yesterday. Deciding to enjoy the view while he had it, he walked his hands closer to the giggling blonde, his voice as light as her own, "Show me what you got."

Walking herself backwards, she took a deep breath and slowly started dropping her legs, her back bending to compensate for the shift of weight until her pointed toes were touching the top of her golden head. The strain she was putting on the little string pulled the bottom of her bikini over her mounds, giving Bickslow a nice view of the creamy skin of her globes and the beginnings of a hard on he wasn't going to be able to hide in his red swim trunks. His voice was it's usual deep drawl, "You've been practicing, Cosplayer. Got any splits to show me?," the black of guild mark on display as he stuck his tongue out.

Easing back into her original handstand, she laughed a lilting little laugh before answering almost bored, "Any self-respecting dancer can do a split," which she then dropped her ankles, one forward and one backward, first before rotating them so they were in a downward curve by her sides.

Vander decided right then that there was much more to the Celestial Mage of Fairy Tail than her pure as fresh snow reputation. That, and he wanted to test just how flexible the spitfire of a woman was. The moment was ruined when Laxus emerged from the bedroom, groggy and a little green around the face and sent the Seith Mage a shock, subsequently making his brother crumple to the ground. The Shadow Mage watched as the victor landed in an effortless backbend before standing upright and pumping her fist in the air. Running over the Lightning Dragon and wrapping him in a bear hug, her voice was bright but not sharp, "I've never been so happy for your rude personality in my life, brother dearest. You've just handed me the win and it almost makes up for you burning my retinas yesterday."

He hugged her back lethargically before groaning, "Shut up and give me a pill, woman."

"Awweh, poor Sparkles. I left them on your bedside table last night before I went to sleep. I thought you'd see them," pressing a chaste kiss to his cheek before heading into the room he just left.

Bickslow called from where he had stayed sprawled out on the floor, "You cheated, Starlight. I don't think that counts as victory."

Repeating her sarcastic words from before as she came back into the room, "Awweh, poor Bixy. I didn't say I'd play fair. If Laxus hadn't come in, I was going to summon Loke to knock you on your ass again anyway," before giving the behemoth blonde the pills to steady his stomach and anchor his senses.

Flexible, beautiful and underhanded. This woman was getting more and more appealing by the moment. Before he could hang around any longer, he needed to let Cristoff know they were going clubbing tonight and slipped back out of the room and into his own suite.

"I would have pushed you over just to watch you sing karaoke," Ever adding with a wicked smile.

"Bickslow doesn't do karaoke. What the fuck are you talking about?" Laxus gruffed out after downing a glass of water and leaning back on the counter of their little kitchenette casually.

The blunette got up and threw an arm around the proud little Celestial Mage before answering, his voice full of false accusation, "Your devious little sister tricked me into a rigged contest and now she thinks she entitled to force me on a stage to sing in front of a group of strangers. The gall of some women," shaking his head playfully.

Narrowing his eyes at the pair, "Is that why you two were upside down?"

"Mmhmm, and I won. I'd say it was the universe coming back at you for overconfidence but I honestly just think you happened to be in the right place at the right time," Lucy spoke sweetly before she looked up at the smiling mage and patted his cheek, cooing up at him, "A little lightning never hurt nobody."

With a deep laugh, he poked her nose, "There are so many things wrong with the words that just came from those pretty pink lips, Kitten."

The pained groan that came from the hulking blonde pulled giggles from the two women before Lucy sing-songed as she made her way into the master bathroom, Ever following suit on both accounts, "Balls deep, brother of mine. You were balls deep in a woman and I saw it with my own precious eyes. That's not something I'm going to unsee ever," and disappearing to get ready for their night out.

As the pair settled on their outfits, Ever slipping into a deep emerald tube dress covered in gem-like sequins and a pair of killer strappy stilettos to match and Lucy in a blood red halter top with a plunging neckline that ended just above her bellybutton with a practically non-existent back, a flirty black leather mini skirt with two little slits at the tops of each of her thighs and a pair of suede thigh high black boots, the Fairy Mage eyed her friend in the mirror as she played with her long blonde hair to decide what she wanted to do with it, "So what happens if you see tall, dark and charming tonight, Lulu?"

With an easy laugh, Lucy answered casually, "I seriously doubt that would happen but if it does," she gave a shrug to the brunette looking at her intently in the mirror, "I guess I'll see him. I don't even know what Bix and I are but I doubt Laxus will be calm if he smells Bickslow on me and I have a lot and I mean a lot of worked up sexual tension, Ever."

The brunette felt for the younger mage. She was being put in an impossible situation because of Laxus' overprotective instincts and she knew the little blonde was far from innocent when it came to exploring what she liked in bed, but Lucy didn't do one-night stands and she didn't do casual sex in the basic sense. She was too much a romantic to adopt her brother's fuck everything with legs and a nice set of tits carefree ways. Bickslow didn't do relationships and as much as he doesn't act like it, he respects the Lightning Slayer too much to actually do anything to mess with his opportunity with Lucy. It was a maze of wrong turns and dead ends they had to navigate and she honestly wanted the pair to work, but Bickslow was a man of physical pleasure and he was never one to say no to a good time. He and Lucy haven't discussed the terms of 'taking it slow' from what the blonde had told her and it worried her that one of them was going to hurt the other unintentionally. Sure, she liked the idea of her teammate being the one under duress instead her but that didn't mean she wanted him hurt because of it. Steeling her nerves, the Fairy Mage was determined to keep either from doing something stupid, or at least, she'd try her best while they were out. Bickslow was pretty known for making less than bright decisions.

After that, they fell into an easy back and forth like they'd been friends since childhood as Cancer came out to do their hair and makeup.

Meanwhile, the three men of their team were all taking up separate spaces around the living room; Freed in his usual outfit as he skimmed over a book on the history of the Joyan Empire, Laxus impatiently tapping his foot from where he had finally sat down on the edge of the couch after pacing the room for ten minutes dressed in his deep plum silk dress shirt and black slacks, the sleeves already rolled up to his elbows and the top three buttons undone as Bickslow donned a pair of low slung ripped jeans and a black dress shirt that fit his broad shoulders nice and snug with the top three buttons undone as well as he tried to explain to Muu why Lucy couldn't be trusted, which the little spirit denied before floating to said woman who appeared in the living room dressed to kill with her golden hair in wild curls and almost no makeup save a gold winged cat-eye with Ever at her side.

The Celestial Mage raised an eyebrow as she eyed the Seith Mage, his visor firmly affixed on his face, playfully after the littlest totem finished tattling on him, but before she could actually poke at the man Laxus' rough baritone cut off any conversation, "About fucking time. I've been cooped up in this room for way too long and I feel like a caged animal. Let's fucking go."

"At least you had some good company, Bossman," sending the giggling blonde a tongue lolling smile as he poked at the dragon leading them out the door, "Heard you had a very deep connection."

"I am not passed knocking your sorry ass out and leaving you in the room," the seriousness in his deep baritone would have scared any other human, but the blunette just clapped the man on the back and cackled down the hall.

By the time the five of them had arrived, the club pretentiously named One Nighter was in full swing. The lights were low save the technicolor kaleidoscope of special effect lightning moving around the floor, fog machines were set to give the place an air of mystery and ambiguity; the overall feel was sensual, as heady and dense as the fog mingling with the dancers. Karaoke didn't start for another hour but that didn't stop the girls from making a beeline for the bar to grab drinks for the table the rest of their team had snatched up in the back corner of the first floor.

Two tequila shots later, Ever and Lucy finally made their way back to the high table, the blonde carrying a whiskey sour and the tallest beer they had for her and Laxus, Ever carrying a mojito and a glass of the sweetest red wine they had for Freed while Muu was adorably balancing Bickslow's whiskey neat on the top of his body.

"I love this place already," Lucy breathed out as she climbed onto the chair next to Laxus to hand him his drink before taking a healthy drink of her expertly mixed cocktail.

"Why? This place is loud, smells like sex and the dance floor looks like an orgy with all that grinding," he drawled grumpily.

With surprising amount of bubbly innocence, the little blonde all but yelled, "Exactly! This place is great!," making the blonde to her right inhale some of his beer, Freed to let out a very unbecoming snort and Bickslow to dive into a fit a coughing that would have alarmed the little blonde had she not been eyeing the dance floor longingly.

Downing the rest of her drink with a slight pucker, she sucked the maraschino cherry into her mouth before pulling the stem out and tossing it beside her glass, her voice a little raspy from speaking too soon, "I'm gonna go get lost in that orgy of grinding." The beaming blonde hopped down from her stilted chair to make her way into the sea of people, only pausing to lean over the Seith Mage's shoulder, her lips teasing the lobe of his ear as she spoke quiet enough Laxus couldn't hear, "Catch me if you can, tricksy spider," before effectively weaving her way through the tables to get into the writhing mass of bodies.

Sensing the blunette's reaction to his sister's words, Laxus drawled out in a bored lazy tone, "I don't what she said to you but I will remind you, that is my sister and you're already on thin ice."

"Lighten up, Laxus. You act like she's not a healthy young woman a sex drive just like you," Ever tossed back to the blonde. His steely eyes rolled as his only response to her accurate statement.

Before too long, the announcer started the night's main event with a flair that was almost hilariously over the top that had Lucy seriously in need of another drink. Making her way through the somewhat thinned out crowd to stand at the edge of the bar on her tiptoes to wave the smiley bartender down.

A familiar lighthearted voice sounded from beside her, "It seems I've found you alone again, Princess."

Turning her head to take in his long black hair and striking eyes, her eyes widened in recognition as the alcohol in her system dropped her guard and left her unintentionally flirtatious and touchy before she answered in her usual lilting voice, "Not alone, tall, dark and charming," her lips splitting into a brilliant smile as she gestured in the vague direction of her table, "My friends are over there. Or at least they were when I left them to dance."

When the bartender came down to take her order, she ordered another tequila shot and a whiskey sour with extra cherries, her hand bracing on her mystery man's forearm to keep her steady as she leaned over the bar so she didn't have to scream before she felt a warm, large hand wrap around her waist. Assuming the princely mage sensed her unbalance, she didn't react to the smooth caresses at her hip before settling back on her feet and turning to face the handsome man, "I'm Lucy by the way. I don't think I actually introduced myself yesterday."

Thanking the bartender when he handed the man two shots of what looked to be tequila as well, his deep blue eyes that reminded her so much of the night sky that cradled her beloved stars, turned to her, he smiled before taking her hand in his to kiss her knuckles in a swift motion, "Cristoff, but your steward gave your name away when he informed you of your brother. How is he by the way?"

With a melodic laugh, she answered easily, "Oh he was better than okay. I walked in on him fucking a pretty brunette bent over our couch," before taking a sip of her cocktail. Cristoff couldn't help but laugh at her crude yet lackadaisical response. A sound the Celestial Mage couldn't help but feel was familiar somehow.

"Is that your shot, Princess?"

Looking a little forlorn, she sighed as she sagged a little, "Yeah, but it feels kind of weird doing tequila shots by myself. I usually have Cana here to play the devil on my shoulder."

His chest rumbled with his laughter now, his deep voice sending shivers down her back as he leaned closer, "I've got the perfect replacement for your Cana, if you think you're up for it," raising his brow at the smirking little blonde.

Grabbing her glasses, she gave him a sly smile as she bubbled, "Lead the way, Charming."

Cristoff had led her up to the second floor, his large frame blocking her view for most of the short walk, so when he finally moved out of the way and she saw the man from the oddity shop giving her a Cheshire smile, she all but seethed as she took the seat on the opposite side of the round booth to the bulkier of the two men but next to her handsome creep if she scooted in more, "You."

Taking his shot from his very confused brother, he retorted playfully, "and you, sugar. What are the odds."

Genuine confusion took over both his face and his words as Cristoff asked, "You know her, Van?"

Before he could answer, she cut in hotly, "You're the creep from the shop! Wait, how do you two know each other?," tilting her head cutely as she pointed between the two ridiculously handsome men, eyeing them skeptically.

"I think a better question would be, how you know these two, Cosplayer," Bickslow's voice had an unfamiliar edge that if she hadn't been a little tipsy, she would have known to been wary of but that wasn't the case in this instance.

Her face actually lit up when she saw him, her voice brighter as she tugged him down into the booth next to her, alarming all three Pradesh boys at her strength, "Bixy! I was wondering where you got to. I was waiting on the floor for you but you never came," her smile faltered a little before looking at the extremely confused beast of a man and she brightened back up, "Then I met Cristoff at the bar and he invited me to find a replacement Cana but he lead me to the him instead," pointing to Vander who was still donning the curling smile that both the men knew only lead to terrible things, immensely pleased with himself at the outcome of the meeting so far, "Who I kind of met earlier...I may or may not have punched him in the curio shop. Why didn't you come after me?"

Bickslow had a headache at the ridiculousness of the whole situation. Trying to handle one thing at a time, he wrapped an arm over her shoulder, his voice significantly softer than before, "Sorry, Kitten. Laxus has made it his personal mission in life to act as permanent cock block for me while simultaneously threatening me if I hurt you in any way. It's been a weird hour."

With an adorable pout, she crossed her arms over her chest, the thin material of her top coupled with her obvious lack of a bra left little to the imagination as he and his brothers all confirmed that she definitely had her nipples pierced, as her voice grew haughty, "What a fucking prick. He gets to fuck anything with tits and a set of legs but I can't even flirt a little. You know what? Fuck him. Let me out Bixy, I'll go show that pompous hypocrite just how it feels to have to walk in on a Dreyar mid-fuck."

Vander's unbidden laughter was only interrupted by his encouragement for the little spitfire, "How you gonna do that, sugar? Plan on dragging someone into his bed and fucking them senseless until he walks in?"

Downing her tequila shot like a professional, she gave the Shadow Mage with dangerous wine eyes a wicked smile, her voice husky from the alcohol, "Good plan. You make an excellent devil for my shoulder," turning to Cristoff who was smirking at her brazen attitude to give him a smile as she squeezed his hand from across the table, "You were right, Charming. He is perfect."

Rubbing his hands down his face, their older brother sighed heavily before pulling her hand from Cristoff's the moment his thumb started rubbing circles over her smooth skin, "Dear gods, what the fuck are you two even doing on a cruise ship headed to Minstrel?"

With a sudden epiphany, Lucy slid closer to her new-Cana. She motioned for him to duck closer to her so she could talk with him privately as if the moment she left Bickslow's side, all attention didn't immediately pull back to her. Obliging the tiny woman, Vander leaned forward to lower himself to her level and cage her in as his left arm was behind her head on the back of the booth and his right was still holding his shot on the table before she turned back to the other two men with narrowed eyes, "Go back to your conversation. I'm trying to have a secret chat with the devil," motioning them away with little shooing hand waves. Only when they went back to talking did she saddle up to the man Cristoff called 'Van', her hand over her mouth to whisper in his ear, "Are you three related? I'm getting serious brother vibes and Bixy won't let me out and I just want to sing so what do you say, Red, will you help me out of the booth?" before she pushed a loose piece of hair from his face and noticing the deep red highlights throughout his dark hair.

Turning his head so his lips were right on the shell of her ear, "Depends, sugar. What'll I get if I get you away from my brothers?" He didn't miss the way her breathing hitched as he spoke.

Inebriated Lucy wasn't exactly the best at coming to rational decisions in addition to being way too touchy-feely. Remembering how well it turned out for her when she told Bickslow he could name his price which ended her here in this weird non-relationship with the most amazing, fun-loving ans sweet man she had ever met, she quickly answered without thinking, turning her body towards his, "Name your price, Red."

"Hang on then, sugar. You're about to go for a ride," wrapping his arms around the giggling curvy blonde and disappearing into the ever present shadows throughout the club before either of his brothers could figure out what he was doing. When they resurfaced, he was a little worried she would get sick with the way shadow travel worked but she just looked up at him from beneath her thick lashes completely unfazed and beaming. When he heard his older brother's 'What the fuck Vander?! I just goddamned found her, you little shit' his own smile spread across his lips.

Her quiet pondering brought his attention back down to the woman still in his arms, "So that's the creepy vibes I get. You're a Shadow Mage. It's all coming together now. I wonder what kind of Dragon Slayer Charming is though...," before she shook her head and those sparkling honeyed eyes were on him again, her chest still pressing into his, "You didn't name your price, Red."

"I didn't? What a shame," before keeping his arm looped around her waist, his thumb running along the silk of her hip as he lead them over to the DJ handling the karaoke requests.

Bickslow's hand came dangerously close to breaking the heavy glass of Lucy's whiskey sour left abandoned in their booth as he tried not to snap at his younger brother. While Cristoff definitely had the same intentions he did with the little bonde, that they all did apparently, it was obvious that Vander set them up and beyond that, he just left Laxus' little sister with one of the most notorious men in one-night stand history. "Laxus is going to fucking murder me," finally breathing out with a slump.

The Lunar Slayer's voice broke his suffering, "I've never seen you so worked up over a chick before, Bix."

Without moving to look at the hulk of a man, his voice came through uncharacteristically stand-offish, "That's because she isn't just some chick, Cris."

"Princess is about to get on stage with Van and we both know how well that will go," finally taking the time to not only down his shot, but take Lucy's drink and sip at it, adding absently, "Mother of gods, that is a lot of cherries."

"Fuck, I hope Laxus is drunk already."

The moment the lights dimmed and Bickslow heard one the Celestial Mage's favorite songs, its low sensual beat that was made for grinding and dancing, made to get a man worked up, he groaned before turning to see the vixen herself keeping the beat with the steady sway of her hips, his little brother none too shy about filling the space behind her as she started singing.

Ever watched as Laxus' eyes practically bugged out of his head. The Fairy Mage liked the song playing, Say It Right by Nelly Furtado; it was a great dance song and one of Lucy's favorites. Stalling her thought process, she all but scrambled to turn around to see the stage. The dragon's rumbling growl was enough to make her jump but not take her eyes off the sex on legs grinding on her little blonde friend, "What the fuck is Vander doing here and what the fucking fuck is he doing dry humping my sister on stage?"

Freed added casually before taking another sip of his third glass of wine, "I always forget how enchanting her voice is."

Shooting the Rune Mage an acidic glare, the blonde dragon grumbled, "Not fucking helping," before turning his senses to the club to pick out his best friend's unique scent and trying to refrain from doing anything brash in the middle of the crowded club. His steely eyes turned to the stage mistakenly to see the Shadowquip's hands dangerously low on either side of his sister's taut stomach pressing her further into his hips, their movements perfectly in time with each other as the two harmonized entirely too well for his liking.

"This is about to be one of the most memorable nights of our lives, Freed. Either Lucy's going to laid or Laxus is going to commit a murder," the brunette's eyes shined before turning back to watch her girlfriend get some serious moves on.

As if he wasn't dropping a bomb on his teammate, he added smoothly, "Knowing Bickslow's brothers, it's more than likely both will happen."

Her head snapped back to stare at the smirking man, "WHAT! You're telling me that man candy is Bix's brother?"

Without looking up, he pointed to the booth on the upper floor that now held Laxus' seething frame, Bickslow's towering lithe body and a third unidentified man with long black hair and body to die for, "Lucy's mystery man was probably Cristoff, another of Bickslow's little brothers but she's on stage with Vander. They look quite good together actually."

"Are you insane?," she was still staring incredulously at her long-time friend and teammate, "The way Lulu is moving is far from innocent and not only will it send Laxus into a fit, Bickslow's already been trying to rein his shit in. Can you handle the two of them if this goes sour?"

"No, but Lucy can," his level of confidence in the blonde not misplaced but unappreciated by the brunette.

Holding his hand up sarcastically, Bickslow's voice was full of sharp false mirth, not taking his eyes off the stage for more than a few seconds, while he was jealous he definitely wasn't going to miss the show the Light of Fairy Tail was putting on, "Bossman, you remember Cristoff. Please, have a seat, enjoy the show."

The Celestial Mage had enough alcohol in her system to use every bit of her dance background to put on an entertaining and scintillating show, her hand snaking around to grip Vander's neck from behind her as she shamelessly let the heady beat take her over. She didn't need the tiny screen to tell her the lyrics so just before the last chorus could play, she flipped her body around to straddle the hard muscle of his thigh, the hand not holding the microphone tangled in the silk of his shoulder length dark hair. She couldn't remember the last time she'd let loose like this and actually just had fun. Her body was buzzing with repressed sexual tension and the way her partner's hands had moved to the curve of her back, giving her the freedom to move the way she wanted but pressing hard enough to keep his leg between hers, building a fire in her belly that had the little black lace thong covering her core soak with her need.

When the song ended, the crowd erupted in cheers at not only her beautiful voice but the infectiously sexual display she and the Shadow Mage just put on. Pulling the smirking man off the stage by his hand, she spoke excitedly as she made her way back up to the booth, "That was so much fun! You were amazing, Red, seriously. I don't think I've ever had such a good fucking time dancing with a guy before. I should recruit you as my permanent dance partner. You're better than Cana. I think it's all the muscle and height that sets you apart."

He only chuckled his response until he saw the look Laxus was giving him, daggers were being hurled at him from his brother's as well, he could sense them. With a wink to the men at the table, his voice grew husky in her ear as he pressed all the hard edges of his front into the soft curves of her back, making sure to get close enough so his tongue teased her creamy skin, "You're one hell of a partner too, sugar. Shame we couldn't find out if you could manage fucking me senseless in daddy Dreyar's bed tonight," before the smokey wisp of black took him and he disappeared. Leaving Lucy with an owlish look, a healthy blush and uncomfortable ache between her thighs.

Cristoff burst into laughter at his little brother's words before shaking his head and greeting the bubbly blonde who was using her hip to push him playfully so she could sit next to him since both the Lightning Slayer and Bickslow were clearly not good company to be in at the moment, "What a performance, Princess."

Wrapping her arm around his bulging bicep, she gave him a huge goofy grin before pulling a cherry out of what she perceived as their now shared drink, and popping it in her mouth. Laying the stem on the napkin under the drink, she turned her attention back to the seething men across the table from her, voice bright, "Now it's your turn, Bixy. I get three songs remember? Although I really just want to dance now...," leaning on Cristoff's arm, the silky texture of his white button down making her sigh as she rubbed her cheek across the fabric.

Giving his brother a look that clearly said 'if you don't, I'm going to', the Lunar Dragon moved his leg just enough the hook the toe of his boot around her heel to pull her closer, the unusually sweet smell of her arousal making his nostrils flair before narrowing his deep blue eyes at his idiotic brother. Stupid for leaving her this sexually frustrated, stupid for letting her go anywhere alone if he wanted her as much as he obviously did, and stupid for not dancing with the gorgeous woman in the first place. Knowing their little brother, he would have absolutely no issue with giving her what would be a no doubt all night sex fest and he would enjoy every minute of it and so would she.

Turning his attention to smile down at the humming blonde, her eyes widened suddenly before they narrowed and she gave the blunette a sultry smirk, her arm not leaving Cristoff's, "I'm curious about the skill of your infamous tongue, Bixy."

The Seith Mage could feel the static coming from the blonde next to him just as easily as he could hear his teeth grinding down but he knew as long as his little woman was here, there wasn't a damn thing Laxus could do without pissing her off. Feeling better now that the more notorious of his two brother's was gone, he gave her a devilish grin, his voice huskier than usual whether from intent or residual emotion, he honestly didn't know, "Oh yeah, Kitten? Want to test it out?," letting his tongue fall from his lips and wiggling it at her suggestively.

Pulling another cherry from the drink in his brother's hand, she pulled the bright red fruit from the stem, her pouty lips wrapping around it to free the stem and handing it to him, her voice saccharine like the juice lingering on her pillowy lips, "I'd like nothing more," before the pink appendage darted from her own mouth to lick her lips, capturing the attention of both of her deeply tanned companions.

Suppressing a groan, Bickslow popped the stem into his mouth. She was watching him expectantly, entranced by the muscles of his jaw as they flexed before he pulled the stem out from his lips, two perfect knots tied at each end.

Narrowing her golden eyes to challenge the cocky mage, she sent him a saucy wink before pulling the last two cherries from the whiskey sour, pressing a little kiss to Cristoff's jaw as an apology for stealing them, earning a fresh round of growls and one very wide smile from the receiver before she ate the sweet fruit and put both stems in her mouth. The blonde was thankful for her devious Water Serpent spirit, Hydra, Cetus' little sister. Even though she was a silver key and didn't have the power Cetus did, she was an amazing friend if a little too handsy and she was teaching her all sorts of fun little tricks, like tying cherry stems into knots and getting a more intense orgasm with her own hands. So without much effort and in less time than Bickslow had took, she pulled her twin stems out in a perfect even knot at the center of little green stems, her smile toothy and bright.

That is until she heard the grumbling coming from her brother as his arms crossed over his chest. With a careless roll of her eyes, she leaned forward on her elbows which pulled at the red material of her shirt as her nipples barely stayed contained, her voice flippant but they could all hear the heat behind her words, "Oh come off it, Laxus. Why don't you go try to have a little fun instead of brooding up here? I'm sure Bickslow and his brother wouldn't mind making sure I made it back to the suite safely," her smile dripping with sugary sweetness.

Barely able to restrain the snap of his teeth, he took a deep breath before grounding out, "Fine, you know what? Fine. Enjoy the club, shut it down for all I care, but you two have to be around each other for months on this job and if one of you," pointedly looking at the still smirking Seith Mage, "fucks up, you better be able to keep this shit professional."

Watching the blonde leave in a huff, Lucy felt a wave of unwanted sympathy before pulling herself from the booth and running to catch up to the irritated man to wrap her arms around his ribs from behind, her voice quiet but sincere, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have baited you like that. I'm trying, I really am."

She felt some of the tension leave his body. His words surprising the little blonde, "I would rather see you with Bix than Vander anyway, the little prick just likes to stir up trouble. Hell, I'd rather see you with Cristoff."

"Really? I mean not about Red, but about Bickslow. You...you wouldn't be mad?," her words tentative.

With a sigh, he let go of all the residual anger left, leaning back into his little sister's arms just a fraction before breathing out, "I wouldn't be mad." Waiting a beat before adding sharply, "But I am serious about needing to be professional. This isn't just a job, Blondie. You were requested by name by the King of Joya."

Bouncing away from him, satisfied that she got as close to a blessing as she was going to get, she turned back just in time to catch the little smile on his lips as he shook his head and went back down to the table with Ever and Freed. She ambled back to the table before putting a hand to steady herself as she leaned over the booth, giving the raven haired man a chaste kiss to the cheek and a not so chaste view of her barely covered chest, her voice genuine as she pulled back, "Seems we'll be seeing a lot of each other, Charming but your brother owes me three songs of my choice and I plan on collecting. So if you don't mind, I'll be stealing him away now."

His voice was as easy as the smile spread across his handsome face, gesturing to his brother widely, "By all means Princess, I'm dying to see how he handles the stage."

"You and me both, sweetheart. I've seen the way his hips move and I am very eager to put them to the test," grabbing the Seith Mage's hand and dragging him from the booth, though he was more than willing to follow the curvy woman.

He managed to tell his brother to meet them for lunch by the pool on the front deck before Lucy's fingers tangled with his and they were at the bar waiting to be served. She was leaning back on her elbows on the bar top with her curves on full display for him, her voice lilting as she swayed to a unique rendition of SexyBack while they waited.

She couldn't help but smile when he stepped closer to fill the gap between them, one of his hands finding the curve of her hip as his thumb traced lazy circles, voice back to its normal deep, bright baritone that made her core clench, "What do you plan on doing with my hips, la mia luce stallare?"

Her voice dipped dangerously low, as she gave him what he knew very well to be bedroom eyes except coming from the perfect woman trailing her fingers down his chest, had him swallowing thickly, "I'm going to test them out of course."

He was thankful for the bartender's sudden appearance and shocking him even more than his relief at the too smiley man interrupting, Lucy flipped around with a smirk at his blank look and ordered four tequila shots. They way she had to bend over the bar to order forced her to flash the wet dream inducing swell of her smooth ass just as plain as the black slip of lace barely covering her core. While she stayed like that to wait for the bartender to get their shots ready, a bulky man with dirty blonde hair saddled up next to her, his voice slurred and his movement sloppy, "Hey, baby. Can I buy ya a drink?"

Not even looking at the man, she answered sweetly as she reached behind her to loop her finger in one of Bickslow's belt loops and jerking his hips into her body in an unintentional lewd gesture, "We're already waiting on drinks, but thanks anyway."

He couldn't help the smug look he shot the deflating man before thinking the night might not be a total loss after all, even if he still had to sing.


	7. Step Seven: Pay the Price

The suite filled with the mages of Fairy Tail stirred at the foghorn that signified that it was noon and time for hungover mages to get out of bed. The roomy space was filled with a cacophony of groans and grumbled swear words as they each meandered into the kitchenette wear Freed had started a fresh pot of coffee, the smell breaking the initial wave of nausea which his teammates were eternally thankful for. Only after the first twenty minutes of silence did Laxus get up with a rough shove of his chair and started stalking through the suite.

Watching the man pop in and out of each of their rooms, Bickslow's voice turned from where he had came out on his briefs and slumped back in one of the too small dining chairs, questioning as he grumbled out, "What's the problem, Bossman?"

The dragon's voice had an edge that none of the Raijinshu were particularly fond of, "Where is Lucy?"

Ever stared over her mug, blinking owlishly before she spoke cautiously, "She slept in your bed...didn't she?"

"Why would she sleep in my bed?"

"She said...well, honestly I don't know why but she was adamant that she needed to sleep in your bed," taking a sip of her black coffee with a slight grimace.

Laxus was obviously struggling to keep himself in check between his hangover and his missing sister so without his usual acid when it came to accusations about said little sister directed at his best friend, he glared at the unusually silent Seith Mage with barely contained irritation, "Bickslow, you better produce my sister within the next five minutes and I might feel a little less inclined to throw you overboard."

Shaking his stupor from his head, he looked into his friends steely eyes, voice earnest with worry, "I wish I could but she didn't spend the night with me. Last thing I remember was her telling me she was going to try and get you to sing with her and her disappearing in the crowd," as he tried to rub the sleep from his face.

Getting up to get dressed to meet his brother for lunch, Freed's smooth voice interjected from where he was practically inhaling his black coffee as he wrapped his red silk robe tighter around his body, "The last thing I remember was her popping back to the table to ask where you were, Bickslow."

"Well I don't really care who remembers what, I want to make sure my baby sister is okay so everybody get up, get dressed and get ready to tear this death trap apart piece by piece until we find her," Laxus' hulking frame gruffed out as he made his way back into his room. His thoughts were flipping between murder and concern, both had him seeing red indiscriminately.

The Seith Mage was trying to keep it together but he had a sinking feeling in his gut and he wanted to skip out on lunch with Cristoff to keep an eye out for Lucy but he figured another Slayer in the mix would help find her that much quicker. With a sigh he disappeared into his own room and got dressed for the day in a pair of black and grey flowered swim trunks and a loose white tank and let Freed know he was heading out as he strapped his visor to his head.

Mumbling under his breath as he wound his way down the halls, "She could be anywhere on this monster. At least she has her spirits...," before he made his way out towards the pool. He shouldn't have been surprised to see Cristoff with an attractive set of green haired women than he could only assume were twins. With a shit-eatting smirk, he happily interrupted with his voice bright and cheery despite the current predicament he was in; maybe messing with his brother would lighten him up a little, "Cris! I can't believe you aren't more worried about your princess, I mean with her being missing. She was just telling me last night about how much her Prince Charming of a boyfriend is the most amazing and perfect man on the face of the planet." Pretending to notice the ladies now glaring at the laughing man for the first time, Bickslow took each of their hands in his to press easy kisses to the back of them, "I'm so sorry, where are my manners. I'm Bickslow, Cristoff's brother. Who might you two lovely women be?" He couldn't help but smile wider at their shared giggles before they introduced the other.

Before he could lay it on even thicker, the Lunar Slayer's deep silky voice came through carefree and light, "I'm sorry ladies, it seems I've been caught and I have a princess in need of rescue so if you'll excuse us," giving the twins a slight bow and a winning smile, they glared at the raven haired man before sending Bickslow matching winks and making their way back into the pool. His brow raised as he eyed the blunette, leaning on a bar-height table casually, "When did I land a beautiful blonde girlfriend, brother?"

Rolling his eyes beneath the visor; maybe messing with his brother wasn't the best idea, his voice was lacking it's previous mirth, "Lucy is MIA and I'd like your help finding her. I know the only way for that to happen is if you weren't already busy and no easier way to get rid of your company than to make them believe you are cheating scum. I'm sure I could put in a good word with your twins after we find her."

His brother's deep laughter was his only response as he stared at the bulky man incredulously. When he reined in his laughter enough to speak, Bickslow wished he'd skipped out on meeting his brother altogether, "I know exactly where Lucy is, but you aren't going to like it and Laxus is really not going to like it."

Gritting his teeth, Bickslow seethed out, "You better not say what I think you're about to say."

Cristoff shook his head before clapping his brother on the back, his voice still too playful for his brother's liking, "And what do you think I'm about to say? Would you rather I let you search the ship aimlessly?"

"I think you're about to tell me she's with Vander."

Taking a sip from his sparkling water, he added nonchalantly, "If it makes you feel any better she spent the night in my bed instead of his. Our little princess is quite the cuddler." He watched in blatant amusement as his brother's emotions boiled to the surface and he tried to keep them in check in front of all the people at the crowded pool. When he saw the slight flash of green from behind his visor, he stiffened and added quickly, "When I left our room, she was fast asleep and so was Van. I'll take you to the room, Bix."

With a barely visible nod of his head, Bickslow followed his little brother all the way back into the VIP suites of the opposite side of the ship and stepped into a room the same size as their own even though he and Vander were the only occupants. His babies immediately started floating through the suite in search of the Celestial Mage as Cristoff pushed open the master suite, Bickslow right on his heels.

The first thing they both noticed was the apparent lack of curvy blonde and the second thing the older mage noticed was a flash of red next to the rest of her outfit from last night in a careless heap next to his brother's bed. Cristoff was completely oblivious to the other man's downright scathing glare as he picked up a note with beautiful flowing script-like handwriting. His voice was distracted as he smirked at Lucy's words, "Apparently she and Vander are doing some training in one of the gyms. She said she sent another note with Jabari but if you all jumped to arms to find her, you might have missed it. We woke up about the same time you did I think."

Bickslow wanted to demand answers. He wanted to know exactly why her clothes were in a pile next to his brothers disheveled bed and why she slept in his bed instead of his own. Her own, why she wasn't in her bed. He wanted to know what exactly happened between the two of them and how the hell she even ended up in their room instead of his. Hers, why she wasn't in her room. Even after she forced him on stage with her to sing a very playful and theatrical rendition of Sweet Talkin' Woman and somehow pulled Vander out of the shadows to join her in a take two of their little performance as they did another very x-rated version of Rock Your Body. She hadn't managed to find herself without at least someone form Fairy Tail with her at all points. Not that they were babysitting the blonde, she just seemed to flit around between the four of them seamlessly. It still doesn't answer what happened between them dancing and finding out she spent the night in his brother's bed. That was something he was very intent on finding out until Muu came into the bedroom completely distraught with worry for his 'new girlfriend'. Shifting gears, he spoke quietly to try and calm his youngest soul, "Hey, don't worry, Muu. Cris knows where she is and we are going to find her right now, okay?" He knew the little guy wouldn't cheer up until he actually saw the Celestial Mage but he managed to let out a few saddened chirps before settling on his shoulder.

As Bickslow followed his brother's lead to one of the private, VIP gyms retrofitted for magical combat training, he watched his brother's smile curl more and more as they walked. Not in the mood for realistically anything except seeing Lucy and even that was tainted with his own poisonous thoughts, he snapped unintentionally, "What?"

Unperturbed by the heat of his tone, Cristoff answered casually, "I find this endlessly amusing."

Refraining from choking the tanned Dragon Slayer, he ran his fingers through his messy mohawk, voice full of exasperation, "Oh do you? I'm so glad someone is enjoying this."

"I think our princess is also enjoying it," intentionally poking at the taller mage's thinning resolve.

"Don't. Just don't right now. I'm literally stuck in this weird fucking limbo of needing to fuck her and not being able to and it's hell. So don't."

"Last I checked, you were pretty good at limbo, Bix," looking to the side just in time to catch the small quirk of a smile that flashed on his lips.

Letting out a sigh, he tried to release enough of his anger(jealousy) to be able to talk to someone about just how precarious his relationship with Lucy is, "And I love a challenge but that doesn't mean I want to become abstinent under Laxus' careful watch while she sleeps with my brothers. My Boscan brothers who have reputations and skills geared specifically towards her having a mind-blowing experience, while simultaneously trying to prove to my best friend and her older brother that I can be left alone with her. " Rubbing his hand over his mouth to give himself a pause before continuing quietly, "She's the kind of person to draw you in and have you fall head over fucking feet without even trying, without even knowing she's doing it. You don't even know you're falling."

Stopping dead in the middle of the empty hallway, his younger brother stopped to look at him, earnest confusion twisting his handsome face, "You seriously don't think that she and Van..."

Stewing in his own jealous confusion, Bickslow's voice was tight with emotion, "I don't know! I don't fucking know anymore and I'm trying to not freak her the fuck out with possessive bullshit and as much as I want to beat the shit out of Vander right now, he has just as much right as I do to spend time with her. We aren't Promised and she's...she's perfect." By the time he finished, his shoulders had slumped and his babies were cooing softly around him.

The two just stayed in the hallway for a little. Not moving, not talking, just waiting until Cristoff finally broke the uneasy quiet, his silky voice matter-of-fact, "I feel like I should be offended that I have to say this and it pains me a little to admit it, but Lucy and I didn't do anything last night. She was drunk and I honestly think in her confused, very eccentric mind, she thought I was a safe fill-in for you. She did sleep naked though so the night wasn't a total loss," shooting his brother a cheeky smile as he coaxed them into a slow walk to head to their original destination.

With a shake of his head and a genuine smile, he punched his brother's arm before laughing out, "I haven't even seen her naked yet. I mean, you've seen what she wears and that sexy little bikini she has leaves little to the imagination but still. I have to say this for my manhood's sake, fuck you, little brother."

They fell into a comfortable conversation, Cristoff explaining that he and Vander were sent as glorified babysitter's to the crown Princess of Midi and their father insisted they take the time back from the 'mission' to relax and take a break. Both the Pradesh boys had a suspicious feeling that their father knew about the cruises last minute additions. Bickslow launched into the details of their very vague job from the King of Joya himself. When he explained that it was originally supposed to be just for Lucy, his brother raised a brow at how King Illium, the most notoriously finicky and particular man with extremely high standards and a militant style of rule, would request a Celestial Mage of Fiore not even officially S-Class on a mission of what he could only assume is high caliber by the sounds of it. Before he could voice his concerns for his brother's team, Lucy in particular, they stepped through the double doors of the huge open gym lined with mats to watch Lucy in a golden scaled breastplate and shoulder pauldrons, both decorated with a horned dragon's head, with more golden armor over her elbows, forearms, knees and shins in the form of thigh high boots over the sapphire blue cloth that lead to three golden plates to cover each of her hips and thighs over a silky looking flowy skirt printed with the constellations of the night sky on the deepest blue that matched his brother's eyes. The skirt had three slits, one straight up the back and two flanking either side of a strip of golden material with the Draco constellation in a matte gold pattern and when she moved with an agility neither thought possible, her bare creamy legs poked through. They both watched completely entranced as her golden hair flowed from beneath a winged helm that was more reminiscent of a dragon than a bird, a deep blue visor pushed over her forehead and out of her way as she dodged and parried all of Vander's attacks with a golden sword and shield set that the small woman shouldn't have been able to lift let alone wield as successfully as she currently was.

The two brothers looked to each other with mutual amazement, Cristoff's voice airy, "Is that...?"

"...la mia luce stellare...," Bickslow answered softly without a thought as he watched the woman he was already half in love with execute a perfect parry as she simultaneously brought her shield up and bashed his little brothers shoulder, knocking him a few steps backward before he disappeared in the familiar wisps of his shadows. Surprising everyone in the room, she closed her eyes and started whispering under breath. Both the older Pradesh boys were hypnotized by the movements of her pouty pink lips as she started glowing. By the time she opened her eyes, she was almost painful to look at, as if they were looking directly into the fires of a supernova before she crouched and launched herself forward to land on top of Vander's laughing frame. Her voice was bright as her golden light faded and the sword and shield she held disappeared, her golden armor gloved hands were flat on his chest, the armor scales of her thigh high boots digging into the mats on either side of his hips, "Hah! I told you I could land you on your ass." Dropping her Stardress to leave her in the strappy black sports bra and matching spandex shorts, her hair piled in a haphazardous bun with loose pieces framing her face and sticking to the back of her sweat-soaked neck, she put a finger to her cheek playfully with a smug look crossed with elation on her face, "Come on then, Red. I want my prize."

The Shadowquip Mage was aware they weren't alone in the gym anymore and he also knew it would make his older brother's already high blood pressure skyrocket so he pushed himself up to cradle the side of her face and pressed a chaste kiss to her cheek as she let out melodic giggles. Only pulling back enough to whisper in her ear, his breath dancing over the shell of her ear making the blonde shudder deliciously, his voice husky, "You remember agreeing to let me name my price for getting you out of that booth last night, sugar?"

The barest nod of her head was his only response as he smirked to himself before continuing, "For as long as I am able, you'll stay by my side. That's my price."

She couldn't help but let her jaw drop at his words but before she could stop her floundering and try to speak, she heard someone clear their throat from her right side. Turning her head to take in the missing Pradesh brother's, she couldn't help the smile that pulled at her lips at the sight of the tall Seith Mage. Her voice was back to it's usual lilt as she got up and offered her hand to the raven haired mage still on the mat, "Bixy! Did you come to train with us? It's been a few months since you and I sparred last."

Cristoff's smooth baritone cut off his answer sensing his brother's annoyance and wanting to confirm his own suspicions, "Which spirit was that?"

She tried not to pay attention to the fact that Vander had yet to move from his spot directly beside her as she answered, "Well I was using both Scotum and Caelum, that's the sword and shield I had and I had Draco's Stardress equipped. I originally had Scorpios out but Vander broke through the armor easier than I thought he would." Noticing the way Cristoff's face split into a beaming smile, his eyes shining with an emotion Lucy couldn't place, she paused. Immediately reaching her hand to wrap around his arm just above his elbow, her voice dipped as she asked, "Are you okay, Charming?"

His usually bright voice was still like silk but it had a more serious edge, not unkind or hard just different, "You have Draco's key. I haven't seen Draco in...Gods, in years."

Before she could register what was happening, she was being wrapped in the most fantastic bear hug of all time and she smiled softly as her arms snaked around his ribs to rest on the muscle of his back under his flowered shirt, her voice muffled into his chest, "I can call him out if you'd like. It might be tight with all the equipment though."

Not releasing his hold, the Slayer's breath was warm where it tangled in her hair, "Thank you, but I can wait until he won't be cramped."

"I usually call him out on the night of the full moon so we can fly. Would you like to come with me?," pulling back to look into his beautiful blue eyes.

"I'd love to," was his easy response and it would have made her smile if it hadn't been for the loud, abrasive exclamations by his brothers.

"Oh, fuck no!" "Yeah, that's not happening."

Pulling away completely from the mischievously grinning man to put her hands on her hips defiantly, her voice grew heated as she eyed the two men who were taking up equally as defiant stances, "And why not?"

"Unless you want to be locked in Cristoff's bedroom for an all-night orgy, I'd steer clear of him on the night of the full moon," pausing to cross his arms over his leather-clad chest, his voice grew playfully dark as he sent her a devious grin, "Or we could always participate if that's what you wanted."

Bickslow could feel his headache intensify the longer he stayed in Vander's presence and it wasn't helping that Lucy was completely ignorant of most of what was going on.

Tilting her head out of genuine confusion, she looked up between the three men from beneath her long lashes, her voice laced with uncertainty, "What does that even mean? Why would that make any...oh my STARS! That's it isn't it?" Taking Cristoff's face in her hands to take a closer look at his eyes and noticing they weren't gold flecks like she thought, they were silver. She smiled brightly at Bickslow, not releasing her hold on his younger brother's face, "So that's what slayer he is! After the Draco comment, I almost thought he might be the Celestial Dragon Slayer but I would have been able to feel it when I first met him. I knew there was something familiar about you. You're the Lunar Dragon Slayer right? 'Stache Face said there were two dragons born of the night sky."

Her head immediately turned back to meet Cristoff's muscled frame as she let her hands fall from his face so he could talk, his voice an easy drawl, "You keep impressing me, Princess, but yes. I am the Lunar Dragon Slayer. Nurem is my dragon and she's mated to your Draco. I'm surprised you found his key."

With a shrug, she moved to on a stack of mats off to the side to stretch, "I didn't. The Spirit King gave it to me."

This earned three wide-eyed looks before Bickslow managed to speak up, his voice filled with his obvious awe etched into the exposed features of his face, "The Spirit King just gave you the key for the Celestial Dragon, Draco. Just...gave it to you."

Looking up from wear she had pressed her forehead to her knee, she looked between the men all towering over her, "Yes...? Is that weird?"

"Kind of," he couldn't stop the incredulous tone of his voice.

Her stomach growled loudly before she could answer. With a sheepish look, she pulled her hands behind her back as she smiled brightly, "Anyone care for some lunch?"

"I'd love some. How about you and I get changed quick first?," Vander sent his brother's a cheshire smile before tacking on, "We'll meet you at the Cantina."

"I'm sure they wouldn't mind waiting, Red," lifting her hand to trace the visor buckled to Bickslow's tanned face, "Plus I haven't seen my babies in ages. I miss them."

As if they were controlled by the little blonde and not the blunette in front of her, they came to life from behind their mage. Tumbling and twisting around her body as Muu all but cried as he nuzzled into her chest. Her smile was positively radiant as she took the time to coo at each of the totems and the souls they contained, saving Muu for last as she gave him feathery kisses, "My sweet Cutie Pie, I've missed you so much. Do you think Bixy would mind too much if I stole you away for the day?," shooting the man in question a cheeky wink.

Muu floated to nestle into her neck as the Seith Mage answered playfully, "Oh, I don't know. The two of you could get into a lot of trouble without my supervision."

Cupping the little totem into her neck, she smiled victoriously up at the blunette, "Then it's settled. You'll just have to come along and see if you can keep us from doing what comes naturally," before patting his chest and heading into the showers off the side of the gym, every single one of his babies surrounding her as she sang her way through the door.

Following the spitfire, Vander drawled casually as he walked away from his brothers, "Guess which Celestial Mage made a contract to stay by my side. I know the two of you know what that means," turning around to push the door open with his back, his voice a mix of dark mirth that didn't bode well, "Wherever I go, she goes and wherever she goes, I go. Happy Celestial Babe Hunting brothers," before disappearing into the room Lucy had just gone into.

Groaning more to himself than his remaining brother, the Seith Mage ran his hands through his hair, "Wait 'til Laxus hears she made an unbreakable contract with Vander. I'll be the least of his problems then."

Before too long, Vander and Lucy came back out from their showers; Vander in a pair of soft pink swim trunks and a loose white v-necked t-shirt and the blonde beauty in a silky red halter wrap dress that hugged her curves in all the right ways to display her ample chest and hourglass figure before falling to skim the floor. The two hip high slits displayed her creamy toned legs with every step she took towards them, her loose curls flowing around her like silk as she crossed the mats. Bickslow smiled softly at her lack of shoes which seemed to be a habit of hers whenever she was on deck.

As they made their way back up to the restaurant, Lucy's eyes all but bugged out of her head when she heard Vander and Cristoff talking about their father. Blinking at them repeatedly before her voice broke their conversation even though it was small and full of obvious awe, "Your father is Arman Pradesh, one of if not the most prominent figure for diplomacy in Earthland?"

"You know about the Boscan ambassador, Princess?" At this point, the Pradesh boys were starting to not be so surprised by the blonde beauties intelligence and ability to connect things even they couldn't have seen so when Cristoff asked, it was more of a means to prompt the conversation than genuine shock.

Bickslow wanted to laugh at the way the Celestial Mage brightened as if she were talking about a famous boy band and not a political figure of a foreign country, her smile grew wide as she gushed, her hands trying to keep preoccupied by her aimless playing with the babies, "Know about him? Tch, I wanted to marry him when I was younger. Politics and diplomacy was my favorite subject when I was still at the Konzern and when I started reading about all the amazing things he had done at such a young age, it was hard not to idolize him. It doesn't hurt that he's a total fox as well."

The blunette couldn't help but tease the bubbling blonde, tilting his head towards her, his deep voice light, "So it's the older men that get your panties in a twist, Starlight? I'm sure dad will be thrilled to hear he has such a devoted follower."

Her voice matched his as her honey eyes danced with mirth looking up at him from beneath her thick lashes, "It's the tall, dark and handsome ones that really get me going and it just so happens your father falls under that category," patting his chest in a mock patronizing motion, she cooed at him, "but don't worry, sweetheart. It seems your whole family does."

"Wait until you meet the rest of us, sugar," the smooth, carefree voice of the Shadow Mage pulled her attention as she tilted her head curiously.

Her brows furrowed as she asked earnestly, "I've read everything I could about your family, magazine articles, newspaper articles, books on Boscan government and policies and none of them went into real detail about his children," the blush that spread across her cheeks had the brother's eager to hear her half-mumbled statement, "Expect for Farron and Kaleb. I know a lot about Farron and Kaleb."

The four settled at one of the tables just outside the Cantina and ordered their lunches without any incidents, surprising the Seith Mage. Just after Lucy took her last bite of the strawberry spinach salad, she leaned on her elbows and turned to the Shadowquip Mage to her left, her voice lilting but cautious, "I'm assuming you know my word is binding, Red."

He answered smoothly, "I'm assuming you don't usually make open-ended bargains with strangers, Starshine."

Shooting Bickslow a slow curling smile, she returned her attention to his younger brother, "I've only ever made one other 'name your price' contract and that one turned out pretty well for me so call me an eternal optimist and overly trusting when I've had a few shots of tequila."

Her fellow Fairy Tail Mage scoffed playfully before adding, "Because you don't spew shiny bright optimism and trust when you're sober."

"Fair point," completely unoffended by his words the little blonde stole a strawberry from Crisoff's plate and added, "But still, I'm going to need to know the terms of your price because I'm not losing my spirits because we didn't talk about the details. I've worked too hard to have creeps who lurk in the shadows mess anything up," before taking a bite of the perfectly ripe fruit, a small satisfied moan escaped her lips as she licked the sweetness from her top lip.

The oldest Pradesh shot the smirking younger Pradesh a narrowed look as he watched his lithe arm drape over the back of the blonde's chair, his fingers toying with an errant curl, his deep wine eyes never left his brother's as he answered, "So long as you and I are together, you'll have to stay where I can reach you which means you and I are going to get extremely close on this little vacation."

Crossing her arms over her chest, she gave him a saccharine smile, her voice dripping with sugary sweetness, "And what happens when a virile man like yourself wants company to ease the ache in his crotch? While I'm sure I could learn a few things watching you but I'm not so sure it'd set the right mood for you and your one night stands."

Choking on the last bite of his lunch, Cristoff gave the Seith Mage a light pat to his back to dislodge his airways as he stared at the blonde wide-eyed. The raven haired Mage to his right ducked his head as he teased, his voice low, "Are you sure she isn't Boscan?"

The smile Vander sent her had her stomach doing flips she refused to give the mage the satisfaction of seeing as he drawled, "What happened to fucking me senseless in Laxus' bed, sugar?"

"Have you ever fucked a Dragon Slayer's little sister, Red?," she asked sweetly before taking her straw between her lips and sucking down some of the frozen strawberry smoothie she ordered. She couldn't help but feel a little homesick knowing Mira's were better.

Leaning closer to the fiery woman, his voice dipped low, "I can't be sure whose little sister's I've given the pleasure of a night full of endless ecstasy, Starshine."

"Laxus! Laxus, I found her!," Ever's bright voice faltered as her eyes narrowed and her arms crossed over her chest at just who was with her blonde friend and guild mate, "And she's with Bix and his brothers..."

The tricksy Shadowquip gave his brother's an easy wink before whispering something in the Celestial Mage's ear that had her shutting her eyes tightly and disappearing in the wisps his brother's knew was darker than the shadows since there were hardly any present in the mid-afternoon sun.

Laxus had watched the whole occurrence from across the deck. Moved on from murderous anger to barely contained annoyance, he took the few strides to close in on the table Lucy just disappeared from, his deep baritone laced with agitation as he tried to keep his lightning from arcing off his body, "Someone want to tell me what the fuck is going on?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to reiterate that Vander and Cristoff are NOT my characters. They come from the beautiful brain of Desna. If you want to read some extremely well written and well developed characters that blend into the wonderful world of Hiro's Fairy Tail, look her up on fanfiction AND BE AMAZED. Seriously. She's ridiculously talented.  
> Thanks for being amazing and let me know what y'all think!


	8. Step Eight: Lucy's got Some 'splainin' to do

After a week and a half of having to stay at Vander's side, Lucy learned three things. One, he is an incurable flirt that is only perpetuated by his unfailing success in ALL his attempts and those attempts always ended with someone screaming his name. She had learned a lot from having stay within an arms reach of the promiscuous man and she had long since gotten over the the shock at how many people were totally fine with her presence while the Shadowquip showered them in pleasure. Two, he is an incredible partner in crime and makes for a very interesting new addition to Bickslow and Lucy's never ending mission to poke at the Lightning Dragon club. They had managed to get her brother so riled up, he flipped one of the tables and made a beeline for the gym so he could 'fuck something up before he committed murder' and three, he is obsessed with strawberries almost as much as she is. The last being the most shocking for the little Celestial Mage as the pair shared a bowl of the sweet fruit by the pool at the front of the ship while they people watched. They had fallen into an easy friendship after Lucy had gushed to the Shadowquip about her long-standing feelings for his brother when they shared another drunken karaoke night so with a devious smile, she nodded her head to an extremely sunburnt man with a dad-bod who had fallen asleep on a lounger across the pool from their shared lounge to continue their twisted version of people watching, her voice bright as she leaned over Vander's lean body to grab another strawberry, "Middle-aged man named Bill with three hellion kids all running about the ship raising all sorts of hell without an ounce of supervision. He works in an office behind a desk at a 9 to 5 job he hates and he hates his boss even more. Often dreams of all the ways he could kill him without getting caught but actually follows every demand and does everything he says with an eager nod and 'yes sir, right away sir'. His wife is a heinous bitch who married too young and lives off dirty martinis and killing the dreams of others because of it."

Shaking his head as he chuckled, "Damn, Starshine. That was brutal. I love it," before scanning the crowd and picking out a college-aged young man wearing a bright orange speedo trying his hardest to flirt with an older woman with impeccable hair and make-up wearing a ridiculously large sunhat and a permanent scowl, "Okay, our good friend Pete over there thinks he'll have better luck losing his virginity to an older woman than the girls his own age but really he has secret mommy-issues. He's telling Mrs Robinson about how he almost has a degree in Art History and he just used the line 'someone should call the authorities because you just stole my heart'," and just as he smirked down at the little blonde, Mrs Robinson dumped her drink over 'Pete's' head and huffed away.

Smacking his arm, her mouth dropped open before exclaiming, "No fair! You totally cheat, Red. If I walk over there and his name is Pete, I'm coming back and punching you."

Her only answer was his shit-eating grin as he took a bite of another strawberry. They had only just figured out the contract between the two was completely dependent on Vander's words since he added 'for as long as I am able' so as long as Vander kept their terms vague, Lucy's magic wasn't affected or compromised when she moved more than an arms length away anymore. She had just gained a less aggressive brother who actually enjoyed messing with people as much as she did. Of course, he still flirted with her but she honestly didn't think he even knew when he was doing it at this point. She actually made a really effective wing-woman on the nights she and he would sing together at the request of the manager in charge of entertainment of The Crown Jewel.

Narrowing her eyes at her handsome partner, she pulled herself up from the double-lounge they had been sharing. The curvy blonde adjusted the back of her red cheeky bathing suit, pulled up the bandeau top to sit properly from where it had fallen in her relaxed state and marched over to the lanky man at the bar currently dabbing the fruity drink from his chest.

As the poor guy flushed at her unintentional flirtatious words and her hourglass figure on display, Bickslow had flopped on the lounge next to his younger brother, relaxed smile spread across his lips as his hands moved to cradle the back of his head, his voice bright, "Why's Lucy giving that poor guy at the bar a heart attack? He looks like he's about to pass out."

With a shrug, Vander responded easily, "Starshine thinks I can read minds and she wanted to prove that I can. She's gonna be pissed when she finds out his name is Peter," completely distracted by a pair of young ladies eyeing him up from the other side of the pool.

"Do I even want to know?," his laughter going unnoticed until he turned his head to find his brother gone from the lounge he had just occupied. When he spotted him, his arms were slung around the hips of two bikini-clad woman who were hanging on his every word. Chuckling under his breath, "Should have known he'd ditch me for some hotter company."

Lucy's lilting voice caught his attention as she reached over his bare chest to grab the bowl of fruit Vander had left behind on the table between their chairs to give the blunette a nice show, mirth shining in her eyes, "Is there such a thing, Bixy?"

His grin turned sly as he tucked a loose strand of hair that fell from the ornate flame-inspired hair clip that was holding half of her unruly golden curls back from her face behind her ear in an absent motion as he smoothly answered, "Not that I've managed to find." His playful words earned him a taste of her contagious laughter as she all but shoved him over so she could share his lounge. Her side pressed tightly against his awkwardly until he pulled his arm from between them to wrap around her shoulders as she munched the remaining berries and hummed to herself.

"Have I mentioned how much I love your family?," turning her head to lean her chin on his chest, her voice matching the silly grin on her lips, "because I really love your family. I'm glad Laxus didn't keelhaul anyone."

"Oh he did, Vander just has this really annoying ability of never being able to be taken off-guard so he never hit the water," trying his hardest to ignore the way she had thrown her legs over his so she could face him.

She sat up a little straighter, pushing her chest out as she sing-songed, "I managed to do it twice so far."

Laughing openly at her obvious pride in herself, he let his tongue loll from his mouth before asking, "What was the second time? I was there when you managed to knock him on his ass in your valkyrie cosplay."

Shooting him a play glare, her voice grew haughty as she flipped her hair over her shoulders in a dramatic show, earning her a hearty laugh from the Seith Mage, "I'll have you know that my Draco Stardress is my best costume yet," dropping her playful front to add casually, "And it was actually when I met him in the curio shop. Remember when I said I punched him? Yeah...well I swung at his jaw and he managed to dodge that but he wasn't expecting the jab to his stomach and I knocked his breath right out of his chest. He was doubled over and heaving. The minute he found his breath, he was laughing at me though. He really is an ass."

Laxus, who was eternally thankful for Cristoff's healing abilities and not feeling even an ounce of motion sickness, laid across the lounge next to the pair in a pair of black and yellow swim trunks, his arms behind his head as he drawled, "It took you a week to come to that conclusion, Blondie?"

Setting the now empty bowl back on the table, Lucy's voice was playful as she smiled at her brother, "It actually took me less than thirty seconds after he opened his mouth, brother dearest."

Nodding his head in a quick motion, "That's what I like to hear. Either of you see, Cris? He said he wanted to talk to us about our mission but I haven't seen him yet today."

"It's the day of the full moon, Boss. Probably best you don't see him unless you want a repeat of-" Laxus' lightning shot through his body before he could finish his words as the hulking blonde glared at his best friend.

His voice a dangerous growl as he ground out, "Never bring that up ever again."

Putting her hand over her giggling mouth before her brother could focus on her, she eyed the two men, torn between asking just what the hell that was about and not wanting to feel her brother's wrath before she summoned Plue out. His little body was doing adorable wiggles before he crawled from Lucy's lap to poke Bickslow's arm, his voice full of his nervous energy, "Puun punpun. Pun pun puun...?"

While the Seith Mage could read the tone of his voice and the aura that came from the spirits bright yellow soul, he didn't actually know what the little guy was saying so he shot the softly smiling blonde a look before she shook her head a little and translated, "He was wondering if you would take him swimming. He doesn't swim very well but he loves the water. Natsu makes him sick and he doesn't like how cold Gray makes the water so he doesn't get much male interaction."

"Got you," turning to face the shaky Little Dog spirit, his smile was as easy as his lilting deep voice, "Let's get out there, little man. Who knows, maybe you can convince your mage to join us on those gnarly slides."

Her spirit's exuberant chattering was all the answer the blunette needed as he set Plue up on his shoulder before getting up and offering his hand to the blonde beauty smiling up at him, "If you would accompany Plue and I, Starlight."

She took his outstretched hand and as he eased her from the lounge, she turned back towards the blonde basking in the sun with the barest hint of a smile on his face, her smile as brilliant as the beams of sunlight shining around her in a halo of gold, "Meet for dinner at that fancy restaurant with the dinner theatre thing at nine?"

He let out a sigh as he rolled his steel blue eyes, "I guess but I'm not dressing up. You'll deal with whatever I decide to put on."

With her own eye roll, she scoffed out, "I don't care what you wear. I'm looking forward to seeing the circus themed show with my very handsome date." Both the men raised a brow at her words before she clarified quickly as her eyes went owlish, "I was talking about Muu. He and I saw the poster this morning and he was looking forward to seeing the trapeze part."

After the trio managed to try every single waterslide at the front pool, Plue was ready for ice cream and asked Lucy if he and Bickslow could go by themselves in a 'boys only' trip, which she of course agreed to. As she watched the pair walk to one of the booths that did a build your own sundae thing, the little blonde made her way back to the table Laxus had fallen asleep on the lounge beside to wrap her white sarong around her hips and meandered her way to the very front of the deck to watch the waves for a little.

Her hair had finally dried in loose waves by the time she felt a familiar presence come from behind her to lean on the railing beside her. With a gentle smile, her voice was easy, "Well hello there, Charming. What's a fine man like yourself doing all by himself?" After she figured out his relation to Nurem and basically shifting him into the category of brother by means of him being the son of the Lunar dragon and she practically being the daughter of the Celestial dragon and the two being mated, it had made the tension between the brothers lessen significantly. She had never experienced his 'moon drunk' state though and as the sun was a sliver on the horizon, she felt a warm hand trace up the back of her arm, sending instinctual goosebumps over her flesh.

His smooth as silk voice was making her body heat as he moved closer, "Does it look like I'm alone, Princess?"

Swallowing thickly, she tore her eyes from his and it was alarmingly hard for her to do when she noticed the faint silver glow. As she clenched her hands into fists from where they hovered over the railing, her nails digging into her palms as a welcome distraction from her uncontrollable hormones and urges to touch him anywhere, everywhere, "Why don't you head to one of the clubs, Cris? I have to meet Laxus and Bix for dinner."

A wave of unwanted arousal spread through her body as his body pressed closer to hers. Ignoring his sweetly spoken words, she squeezed her eyes shut and focused on anything except the irresistible urge to run her hands over his chest and take the beast of a mage. She focused on Bickslow's easy smile, on Laxus' booming laugh, on Vander and the breathing exercises he showed her. Anything except Cristoff and how delectable of a man he was. No, no that's not right. Focus. She could hear Vander's easy voice as if he was right in front of her and it brought a smile to her lips, her body settling into easy relaxation at the sound and her sudden lack of arousal.

"Starshine? How the hell did you get in here?"

His unusually off-kilter voice had her eyes flying open. It was then that she realized she was no longer on the deck with Cristoff, but in Vander's room of their suite as he wrapped a towel around his hips. He had obviously just gotten out of the shower before she managed to find her way into his room and not on the deck like she had just been a moment ago. She blinked a few times as she pointed to the Shadowquip and herself then around the room, stuttering out, "I was-...But how-...Why am I here? How did I get here?"

"That is something I feel like you should be able to answer, sugar, not me," he said with a carefree laugh.

Still awestruck and confused, she sat on the edge of his bed before quickly thinking better of that and getting up knowing just how often the man brought partners into it and sitting on the chair in the corner of his room, her voice breathy as she narrowed her eyes in deep thought as she puzzled it out, "I was on the deck when Cristoff came out of frickin' nowhere and started his," her hands coming up to wiggle at the Shadow Mage,"...moon voodoo...and I closed my eyes to distract myself from his very influential moves. I thought about Bix and Laxus before I focused on you and the breathing technique you showed me. I thought I was just having a bout of really astute imagination when I heard your voice but when I opened my eyes, I was here instead of there." Muttering under her breath as she wrapped her arms around herself as she shuddered, "Not that I'm complaining about the quick escape."

"Well you are just full of surprises," shaking his head as he dropped the towel to pull on a pair of briefs before sitting on the bed across from her since the two had literally stayed within two feet of each other for a week and had lost all semblance of boundaries, his voice its usual drawl, "I think you and I need to have a conversation with Bickslow and one of your spirits."

She nodded her head as her voice grew a little more even, "Yeah that would be best, I think. We are heading to a late dinner show tonight if you wanted to come, Red."

Granting her a genuine smile, he ruffled her hair as he got up to get dressed, his voice lacking his usual casual tone as he asked earnestly wanting to know, "Why do you call me Red?"

Pulling her clip from the edge of her sarong as she gathered most of her hair back from her face in a messy bun, she gave him a shrug before explaining, "When I first came up to your table that night in the club, Cristoff had said if I followed him, I could find a replacement for the devil on my shoulder and when you turned out to literally be perfect for the role, all I could think about was you in a red leather devil get-up. Little pointy tail and all. Then I noticed the red in your hair and it just stuck."

He blinked at her before repeating, "You pictured me in a red leather devil costume and your alcohol-addled brain decided to nickname me Red," nodding his head with a carefree shrug, his voice was an odd mix of acceptance and disbelief, "I've been called worse by beautiful women."

"So I've heard just this past week," was all she uttered before he was dressed and they were making their way back to Fairy Tail's suite so she could change.

The pair had somehow managed to miss every single one of her teammates as Lucy showered and got ready, Vander lounging across the tiled edge of the massive soaking tub as he asked her about her magic, both completely at ease with the other's presence.

When she asked the raven haired man to help zip up the back of her seemingly see-through black lace long sleeved dress with a high collar that fell mid-thigh, he looked at her in the reflection of the mirror, "So our magics are eerily similar in some aspects and maybe that in addition to our very unorthodox contract could have triggered some sort of...means to open each other's 'gates'."

Tossing the idea around in her head, she finally settled on, "It would make sense, I suppose. But neither of us are spirits so theoretically, I shouldn't be able to summon you and I don't even want to think about if I somehow summoned myself to you. We are getting a little too twisty for my liking," summoning Cancer out before adding, "We'll have to talk to Loke and Grampa Crux after dinner."

When Vander and Lucy made their way down to the restaurant, they had been getting many looks ranging from all-out adoration, hungry desire all the way to viscous jealousy as the crowd took in the seemingly too-gorgeous couple with Vander's tight black jeans and casual midnight black button-down and Lucy's stunning dress that displayed her long shapely legs only made more obvious with her strappy stilettos she walked in effortlessly. Her blood red lips split into a beaming smile as she laughed at something he whispered in her ear as the few loose wisps of her blonde hair that escaped her nest of golden curls at the top of her head secured only by a single onyx chopstick moved wistfully around her face.

Muu heard her melodic laughter before Bickslow did and while the Seith Mage usually didn't mind his youngest spirit's wandering ways, he turned his head to call him back before his eyes landed on his Celestial Mages sinful body and he was dumbstruck.

Freed's smooth voice called from where he had sat opposite the towering man at their round table, "I still think they look good together."

Ever rolled her eyes before shooting back, "Of course they look good together," giving the Rune Mage a shake of her head from her spot between he and Laxus.

"Blondie looks good with everyone," the Dragon Slayer added under his breath as he took another drink from his third glass of beer.

The Shadowquip pulled the chair next to Bickslow out for Lucy before taking the last free chair, putting him between the blonde beauty and Freed. The moment she was settled, Plue jumped from Bickslows lap to her own to hug his mage, his voice sleepy, "Punpun puuun. Pun pun pun pun."

Kissing the top of his head, Lucy hugged her spirit as she smiled softly at the little spirit's compliment, "Thank you, Plue. You ready to head to bed?"

With a quick nod of his head and an adorable yawn, he waved his paw up at his new playmate before disappearing in a little poof of gold.

She felt his hand move to her thigh as he ducked his head to talk to her, his voice low and edged with concern that he was obviously trying to mask, "Little man was worried about you when you never came back for him."

Clearing her throat remembering her odd encounter with Cristoff, she grabbed Bickslow's hand before he could pull it from her leg at his misunderstanding of her sudden tenseness, her voice strained as she managed to get out, "I...uh...had a run in with your brother...before I could come back." Even she cringed at her words.

Looking over at Vander who was toying with Freed's errant strands of hair and making the man blush something fierce instead of watching their brother who was probably halfway through fucking the population of the boat, his brows furrowed as his lips flattened before asking tentatively, "Which brother, Lucy?"

Her cringe deepened at his use of her name. While she had already been over with all of her team that Vander and Cristoff were both like brothers to her, the Lunar Slayer couldn't differentiate her from every other beautiful woman while under the moon drunk sensation of the full moon and Bickslow knew that. Hell, if she was in his place, she'd have trouble keeping her jaw from cracking and her teeth from grinding at the way this looked so she explained as best she could before the lights could dim and the show started, "Cristoff but I promise you nothing happened between us. Vander and I actually have to talk to you after the show about...," and the show started and her words were lost to the clapping at the announcers deep rumbling voice but the way she smiled at him when her lips stopped moving coupled with the way she laced her fingers with his set his mind at ease.

By the time the intermission came, Laxus was plastered and it took both Bickslow and Vander to wrangle him up into the suite as he rambled on about how Bickslow should take Lucy's last name and become a Dreyar which the deeply confused Seith Mage responded with, "Isn't her last name Heartfilia?" and the drunk dragon only shoved his hand over Bickslow's face as he shushed him as his only explanation.

The little blonde couldn't help but giggle at her big brother's antics as she lead the trio of men to the master bedroom and directed them to sit the smiling blonde on the edge of the bed. The moment they released their hold, he fell backwards and flopped heavily on the bed, his voice as light as his deep baritone gets, "Sister dearest, will you take these fuckin' boots off my feet please?"

Bickslow had pushed his visor up when Laxus knocked it crooked with his drunken effort to 'shush' the man and because of this, the Celestial Mage watched his brows shoot up into his hairline at his boss's use of the word please. Her easy lilt filled the space as she crouched in front of her brother and started unlacing his boots, "Anything for you, brother dearest."

With a smug grin, Vander leaned his head on his brother's shoulder, his voice mocking the blonde siblings in front of them, "Will you tuck me into bed, brother dearest?"

His rumbling laughter fell from his lips as he shoved his little brother from him playfully, his voice light and mirthful, "Anything for you, littlest brother dearest."

Lucy couldn't muster up any ill-feelings as she shook her head and laughed, "Shut up, you assholes."

"Yeah, shut up, assholes. You're just jealous Blondie loves me more than you," the dragon's voice was full of self-satisfaction from where he had closed his eyes and spread his arms over the white comforter.

Having pulled his boots and socks off, she patted her brother's knee affectionately before asking, "Do you want to keep your shirt and pants on, Sparky?"

"Mmmno, but I don't wanna get up either," his voice got a faraway sleepy tinge to it that both Bickslow and Lucy were very familiar with. The behemoth was about to pass out and when he did, he would sleep like the dead.

Granting the man a soft smile, the little blonde leaned over his chest to press a quick kiss to his forehead before whispering, "Goodnight, Laxus."

His lips split into a lazy smile as he answered, "'Night, Lucy," and then he was out just like that.

"That was downright adorable, Starshine," the Shadow Mage drawled as the trio made their way back out to the living room.

She stuck her tongue out as response before turning around and asking, "Will one of you unzip my dress so I can put on some pajamas?," looking over her shoulder with a completely innocent look that had Vander smirking and Bickslow quickly striding over to stand behind the curvaceous woman. Even with her stilted shoes, the crown of her head barely came to his chin and somehow, that made her more appealing to the towering mage. As he grabbed the little black zipper, he took in every bit of her somehow still creamy pale skin as he pulled the zipped down to expose more of her back until it ended at the curve at the small of her back to reveal a set of dimples, leaving most of her toned back out in the open and her lack of bra was evident by the completely bare skin. Bickslow had to keep himself in check as she looked back at him over her shoulder from beneath her lashes, those honeyed orbs flashing with desire before she disappeared into the room she was sharing with Ever.

"I almost wish Starshine didn't pop into my room this evening just so I could leave you two alone while daddy-Dreyar is passed the fuck out. You both need to work out some serious built up sexual tension," the raven haired mage drawled from his spot where he spread out at the end of their couch.

Running his hands through his hair, he breathed out, "You and me both, Van...wait, what?"

"You heard me right. She just popped into my room," making a little explosion sound to go with his hand gesture, "and there she was."

Moving to sit on the matching loveseat, he took a deep breath as he placed his visor on the end table beside him, "Did you see her...pop in?"

"No, she was just standing in the middle of my room with her eyes shut tight, smiling like an idiot when I came out of the shower."

Lucy's voice cut off the older mage's response, "Excuse you, I happened to have been enjoying your singing when I popped in. See if I ever smile at you again, Red," as she moved to sit next to the Seith Mage, her body clad in a silky emerald green camisole and short set with ivory lace trim. The outline of the star-shaped shields of her pierced nipples crystal clear through the thin material.

"You know you love me, sugar," was his easy comeback without even looking at the little feisty blonde.

Rolling her eyes, she summoned Loke and before her Lion spirit could start with his gushing, she launched into what happened on the deck and how she found herself in Vander's room and their unique contract.

"Have you tried making it happen again?"

She blinked owlishly at her ginger spirit before speaking slowly, "No, I uh...didn't even think to try to make it happen again."

"Vander if you would shift to another part of the ship, I'd like to see if Lucy can find you. If she doesn't come to you within five minutes, come back," Loke spoke easily. The spirit was very interested in testing the theory. This had never happened in all his millennia of existence and he was less than surprised it was happening to Lucy. She seemed to have a knack for getting herself in very unique situations.

With a nod, they watched as Vander's body melded into the shadows and vanished before two sets of very eager eyes turned to the little blonde currently pacing in front of the lacrima tv.

"This is all you, Kitten," his deep voice soothed her nerves before she squared her shoulders and focused on Vander; focused on her breathing and shut her eyes. She could picture his easy smile and the deep wine of his eyes and before she knew it, she felt his hand on her cheek. Opening her eyes, she came face to chest with the man himself. Looking up, she couldn't help but smile before she realized they were standing on the part of the bow people weren't allowed to go and she immediately clutched the laughing Pradesh mage, her voice as scathing as she could manage, "Take us back. Take us back right now, you little shit."

Obliging the scantily clad woman, by the time she opened her eyes again they were back in the safety of their suite. Smacking the still laughing Shadowquip's chest repeatedly, he couldn't help but laugh even harder as she scolded him.

"Well, I guess that answers that," Loke's voice cut through before he watched Lucy plop back in her original spot next to the blunette, her arms crossed over her chest as she glared at Vander. "I think it best if I talk to the Spirit King about this. When you left, you disappeared through a Celestial Gate, Lucy."

Dropping her arms, her voice was full of open astonishment and confusion, "But that's impossible. I can't summon a gate without a key..."

"But you do it all the time."

"No, just because I store my keys in the Spirit Realm doesn't mean I don't need them," she shot back at the grinning spirit.

"How do you get to your keys when you need them?"

"I open a gate to where they are stored and...I...pull them...out," shaking her head, she stood to pace the floor again, her voice filled with frustration that made her antsy and uncomfortable, "But that's not the same as me summoning a gate to Vander and stepping through myself. My keys are in a fixed place in the Spirit World that Virgo set aside for me and I don't physically go into the gate. It's basically re-quipping except using my Celestial Magic."

"Bix, why don't you read my soul and tell me what you see," Vander spoke from where he sprawled across the couch, his voice held an almost bored air about it as he started forming a little star shaped piece of jewelry like the ones that decorated the blondes nipples.

Genuinely confused, the Seith mage uttered, "Ooookay, don't see how that's going to help but okay." Concentrating on his brother's soul, his eyes started to glow that familiar green as he looked over his brother's bright soul carefully. Just as he was about to cut the connection, he saw it. The sliver of gold that only belonged to one Celestial Mage of Fairy Tail nestled deep in his brothers soul. Before he really knew what he was doing, he turned his gaze to Lucy's soul. He watched as her pure gold tendrils reached out to the souls surrounding her. She was almost too bright to look at, just like Vander but he saw it at the core of her soul; the flash of his brother's soul nestled in her own. The only time he's ever heard of souls doing that was when Dragon Slayers met their mates and last he checked, neither of them were Dragon Slayer's. Lucy does have the Celestial Dragon and she could learn Dragon Slaying magic from him but that would mean she and Vander were mated and the fates wouldn't be that cruel to him, would they?

He felt a dainty hand cup his cheek before he raised his eyes to meet the shining amber that made his stomach flip and his heart skip. They reflected the bright green of his own eyes as she looked at him completely unabashed and they were filled with concern. Her voice was lilting and sweet as she spoke to him, "Bix? Are you okay, sweetheart? You look like you've just seen a ghost."

Shaking his head loose of her hand, he cut the magic from his eyes as he stared at his clutched hands in his lap, his voice mechanical and detached, "You both have a sliver of the other's souls at the core of both your souls. I've only ever heard of that happening with mated dragons and their Slayers."

Lucy was confused more at the blunette's sudden change in demeanor than his words. Without really thinking, she sat next to hunched man, her hand pulling his from his lap and into her own as she laced their fingers together. She looked between Vander's concerned deep wine eyes and her spirits with furrowed brows and a slight frown, her voice reflected the confused look on her face, "I'm not a Dragon Slayer and neither is Vander though."

His voice was quiet as he looked directly at Loke, "But she could be...couldn't she?"

With a barely discernible nod of his head, Lucy about burst from her seat, "What the hell does that mean, you baka cat!"

"Big bro is trying to imply that you and I are mates, Starshine," the lazy way he spoke set Bickslow on edge as he tightened his hold on Lucy's hand unintentionally.

The unbidden belly laughter that sprung from the woman beside him almost felt like a physical blow before she used her free hand to wipe the tears from her eyes as she pushed out through her leftover chuckles, "Even if I did become the Celestial Slayer, I'm not right now so I don't have the piece of Draco's soul that would know who my mate is anyway," pointedly glaring at the ginger spirit, she tried to rein in her giggles to scold the lean man, "Which you know, Loke. Whatever connects Vander and I is because of the contract we have, not because we are mates."

"Agreed. As much as I'd love to have you all to myself, we are just not meant to be, sugar," holding his heart in mock pain before sending the smirking blonde a cheeky wink.

"I'll take my leave and have lengthy discussions with Grampa Crux and the Spirit King to hopefully shed some light on your predicament, Princess," pulling her into a quick hug before returning to the Spirit World.

"A thousand jewel says I can summon her like my own personal Celestial Babe Spirit."

Rolling her eyes at his words, Lucy crossed the room to pull the Shadow Mage from their couch before wrapping him up into an easy hug, her voice light, "How about we wait to test that theory until tomorrow, Red? Regardless of what the hell is going on, you saved me from Cristoff's moon voodoo and for that, I am thankful," before she walked them over to the door and all but shoved the raven haired mage out, her shit-eating grin spreading before yelling a quick goodnight and shutting the door.

Probably for the best anyway, Vander really needed to go see about some damage control for his older brother.

When she saw Bickslow in the same position, his broad frame hunched over, her heart broke a little before she grabbed his hand and coaxed him into his room, her voice gentle, "Come on, handsome, let's go to bed."

He let her lead him until he was sitting on the edge of his bed and she was saying goodnight to his babies. When she stood in front of him with her fingers running through his hair in soothing motions, he finally looked up into her eyes to find them swimming with warmth. His voice was still too shaky as he tried to keep his hands from reaching out to her, "What happens if you decide to become a Dragon Slayer, Lucy?"

Her eyes widened a fraction before she stepped closer and spoke matter-of-factly, "Then I become a Dragon Slayer and there will be two growling blondes at Fairy Tail."

"What happens when you find your mate?" He didn't mean to sound bitter but it was there, plain as day as the words dripped from his lips like poison.

"Bickslow, I think it's time you and I had a real discussion about what we are," pulling her hands from his hair to fill the spot next to him, the front of her shin pressed into his thigh as her other leg hung loose over the edge of the bed before she ducked to force him to meet her eyes as she smiled, "I'd like to make this official; you and I. It would be really nice to not have to worry about if it's okay if I touch you in public or if you're sleeping with someone else. It'd be cool if I could point you out in a crowd and say 'that tall piece of sex on legs is my boyfriend' and I'd really like to be able to kiss you without worrying about Laxus murdering you in your sleep."

He couldn't help but let out a scoff of a laugh at her last demand, "How are you going to keep that from happening, Kitten?"

Giving him a sly smile, she shrugged, her voice playful, "Way I figure, if I'm wrapped around you every night while you sleep, he won't have the opportunity to kill you without hurting me and you know how much he hates when I'm hurt."

"Good plan," he breathed out as a genuine smile spread across his lips.

Cupping his face, she turned his head so he had to look at her, "Bickslow, I've had a crush on you since the day you apologized to me in the guild after Fantasia and I've been trying to keep from jumping your bones since the morning after the most perfect date of my life. I'm tired of pretending like I can wait until after this ridiculous mission is over to really try with you. Is this...something you want?" He watched as her smile faltered for a moment before she took a deep breath and started again, "I know you don't do relationships and I know I'm asking a lot of you so if you don't want to make this-"

Her nervous babbling while incredibly adorable was just not something he was willing to wait through as his lips crashed over hers, his hands cupping her face to his. It took less than a moment for Lucy to close her eyes and match his passion with her own, her lips slanting over his as she felt one of his hands pull the chopstick from her hair. The moment her curls were free, his hand was tangled in the golden silk as his deft tongue traced over the seam of her lips. He felt her lips split into a smile before wrapping her arms around his neck and moving to straddle his hips. When she was settled, she let him into her mouth, her tongue dancing expertly with his before she sucked his playfully into her mouth and pulling back, breathless and teeming with excitement, she leaned her forehead on his, "Does that mean I get to tell people I have the sexiest man in Earthland for my boyfriend?"

Chuckling under his breath, he answered easily, "You can tell people whatever you want as long as I get exclusive rights to those lips, Starlight."


	9. Step Nine: Meet the Fox

Step Nine: Meet the Fox

Lucy felt a little bad for the Lunar Slayer since Vander had done absolutely nothing to try and keep the man even somewhat contained and he managed to actually sleep with at least half the population indiscriminately which had the usually easy-going Slayer less that happy as he took in the glares of men and women alike who he had no doubt pulled husbands, wives, girlfriends, boyfriends and gods knows who else into his suite even days now, days after the full moon, as he sat at a squared table that had a giant white umbrella to shade them from the sunlight shining through the clear blue sky with Laxus, Bickslow and Lucy. The only real comfort he got from it was that he at least knew they all had a night of uninhibited pleasure to remember from their vacation.

The little Celestial Mage gave his leg a few reassuring pats under the table before her easy voice tried to ease the middle Pradesh's mind, "If it makes you feel any better, I didn't sleep with you, Charming."

"Only because you have a piece of Vander's soul and the sun wasn't fully set, Princess," as he gave the blonde a winning smile. The moment Bickslow had told him that they were together and that the Seith Mage was the one who clarified monogamy was a must, Cristoff almost fell from his seat. He adored his brother and wanted nothing more than to see him happy and in love with someone that deserved him. While he wouldn't deny that he had his sights set on seeing what the enchanting blonde of Fairy Tail was like as a lover when he first met her, he quickly shifted away from that the moment he watched her eyes light up at the sight of the towering blunette, pure, unadulterated joy flashed in the deep chocolate pools when she did. Throw in the fact that the Draco had wanted her to have his key, that she had the ability to equip the Celestial Dragon's Stardress and she was quite literally perfect for not only Bickslow himself but their whole family, and the Dragon Slayer was sold. He was actually pretty excited to tell their father and siblings that the little spitfire had bested Vander while sparring. It made him more than curious at just how this woman wasn't S-Class at least.

Laxus' deep voice broke his thoughts, "Where is the little shadowfuck?"

Bickslow let out a rumbling laugh before he answered easily, "Dad was pretty pissed when Cris told him he pretty much left him to his own devices under the full moon and 'requested' his presence at the Pradesh abode. He shouldn't really be surprised, it's not like he hasn't done it before."

Warm chocolate eyes turned to the hulking raven-haired Slayer next to her with a look of shock before looping her arm around his as if she could protect him from it retroactively, "That's horrible! I mean, not horrible because you know...you know what you're doing but that's...deplorable and morally reprehensible." Her shoulder slumped a little as she thought about it, "Actually, yeah that sounds about right for Vander."

With a deep chuckle, Cris moved his arm from her hold to drape it over the back of her chair, his eyes shining with brotherly affection, "If it weren't for the fact that it'd make Bix a fuckin' creep, I'd say you were a long lost Pradesh, Princess."

Sliding the giggling blonde a devious smirk, the blunette elbowed Laxus' side before drawling, "You'll have to fight Bossman for her. Laxus wants us to be Dreyars when we get married."

"Piece of cake, lightning boy, but I think the easier solution would be for you to just be a Pradesh yourself," the younger Pradesh brother gave the hulking blonde a wink from across the table.

Blinking absently at his flirtatious words, the blonde dragon's voice was bored as he leaned back in his chair, "You want to get married, moon boy, or are you offering up one of your other siblings?"

"And you say Bix and I are bad," Lucy's voice was filled with her own playful laughter before getting up to get another strawberry smoothie, her hand running over the tanned broad shoulders of the grinning Seith Mage as she did.

As a wide smile took up residency on his face, Bickslow turned back to his brother, his voice bright, "I know you told Dad about her, little bro. What'd he have to say?"

"The usual when the prospect of one of us settling down comes up," waving his hand in a careless gesture as he droned on, "When will you be giving him grandbabies? When are you bringing her home? Does she have any brothers or sisters for the rest of us? He was really impressed that you managed to find the mage Draco had requested his key go to though. You know picky that dragon is and he wouldn't ask the Spirit King to give it just anyone. As far as I can tell, I'm surprised he hasn't taught her his magic."

Surprising both brothers, Laxus leaned forward on his elbows, "He's been trying to believe me. Blondie doesn't want to learn it and then become too reliant on it. She likes using her spirits and she doesn't want to neglect them by becoming a Dragon Slayer. The first time he brought it up with her, they fought so badly that she didn't call him out for months because he was pushing something she didn't want on her. Big foul on the dragon's part. When Loke of all her spirits pleaded Draco's case to her, she summoned him out and that's when he granted her his Stardress. Honestly? If Blondie becomes a Dragon Slayer, she'd be right up there with your scary as shit sister."

Cristoff's voice was serious, taking the two men across from him aback at the uncharacteristic tone, "She's going to have to figure it out soon. If you're serious about her, you'll have to always keep one foot out the door until she decides. You know what will happen if you get married and she finds her mate and it's not you. I'm not losing my brother."

"I've already talked to Draco about it actually. We both decided to at least wait until we are on solid ground before he gives me a piece of his soul."

None of them had noticed the blondes sudden appearance at the end of the table, which was disconcerting on a variety of levels but the Lunar Slayer responded carefully, "So you will become the Celestial Dragon Slayer and then you will see if Bickslow is your mate and then what?"

Giving the blunette a sheepish smile as she returned to her seat across from him before looking up into Cristoff's deep blue pools, "And then we go from there. I refuse to spend my time wallowing and worrying about something that is completely out of my hands. I have full faith in the fates and I don't believe them to be cruel or unfair. I spent the first fifteen years of my life with other people making my decisions for me, where to go, what to learn, how to act, who to be and who to be with. I'm hoping that maybe I've somehow paid my dues. If it turns out that he isn't my mate, well, we will deal with the fallout of that as well. Either way, I plan on enjoying the time I have with him." Taking a steadying breath, she turned her attention back to Bickslow's visored, unreadable face and she realized she really hated that infuriating piece of metal, "I was going to tell you tonight so we could...talk about this together. I understand if you want to keep your distance until we figure this out though. I'll do whatever would make this easiest for you, Bix."

"You weren't kidding when you said trouble finds you," was all he gave as his even reply.

Lucy could feel her heart breaking inside her chest. She could feel the tears burning behind her eyes but she wouldn't let them fall if this was his decision, she wouldn't make it harder for him by dragging it out even if it hurt like hell. She knew the situation they were in was tricky and complicated but that seems to have been the status quo for the two of them. That didn't mean that it wasn't worth it for her. He made her laugh like no one else could, pushed her harder when she needed it while managing to be her safe place. No, it definitely felt like her chest was being pried open at his careless words.

Instinctively, Cristoff felt the pull of her emotions and for a flash of a moment, he almost regretted pushing this conversation but they needed to figure it out before someone got hurt worse than this.

She closed her eyes to try and steel her nerves, her voice as even as she could make it but her heart ached and all she managed was a shaky, "I understand."

When she was meet with silence, she opened her eyes cautiously to take in the sight of Vander mid-bite as the one and only Arman Pradesh was giving her a very bemused look from the head of their table.

Her mouth floundered for a moment as she realized she was standing in the middle of her idol's dining room in a retro style bright pink bikini with high cut bottoms that did very little to cover her extremely toned body and a top that looked almost like a sports bra save for the bright blue over-sized zipper that she had pulled down in the heat of the day to reveal a lot of her ample chest and nothing else.

The Shadowquip had quickly gotten over his surprise before he burst into loud, deep laughter as the handsome diplomat just looked between the two expectantly.

xXxXx

Laxus smacked the back of his best friends head a little harder than usual as he gruffed out, "Way to fucking go, idiot. Now she's Mavis knows where and she thinks you don't fucking want her."

Running his hands over his face, his voice was quiet and defeated, "I didn't mean it like that. I like trouble, hell I'm usually causing it. I didn't think she would," making the same exploding sound and motion as Vander had only more aggressively, "all the way to Bosco, which is where she is. Vander is on house arrest so it's not like she's missing...again."

"If her magic will let her travel that far. It's a pretty big jump from here to home, Bix," Cristoff added in an offhand fashion before leaning forward and flicking his older brother's ear, "Though that was seriously the worst thing you could have said to her. I know it was a shitty way to get it out there but she handled it selflessly. She basically signed herself up for the same thing I'm going through and signed away her right to chose who she loves and she did that so you wouldn't have to spend the rest your lives second guessing if there is someone meant to be her soulmate to love her better than you could. Instead of being half an adult, you ran her literally into the arms of our little brother in a country where she won't find a shortage of men and women who will gladly help her through her heartbreak because I'm here to tell you, you just broke that little blonde's very large heart."

"I should kill you, right? That's standard big brother protocol when insensitive asshats fuck with their little sister." Laxus was seething. Not only had they lost Lucy again before they even made it to Roze but the thing he warned both of them would happen if they didn't think it through fucking happened and it was all because of a poor choice of reaction by the Seith Mage. As his best friend, he wanted to smack him upside the head hard enough to knock some sense into him and as Lucy's big brother, he wanted to break his face.

Unknowing of the blonde Slayer's inner monologue, Bickslow leaned back in his chair, "Well she has to come back for the job so I can just explain to her then and if she doesn't come back, I can call Van. See if he can get her to talk to me."

"I don't think you get it, Bix. Did you not hear me when I said she didn't talk to one of her spirits for months when she got upset? You know how much her spirits mean to her and you just tore her great big bleeding heart out. Just like I fucking said you would. I'm not even being a dick when I say that I'd be surprised if she talked to you as anything more than cordial guild mates."

The Lunar Slayer had hit his capacity for the way this had blown out of proportion and it had literally just happened. So the bulked up Lunar Slayer interrupted the Lightning Dragon's display, "I think that's enough, Laxus. Let's go call Vander right now to make sure she's okay and that she's with him and then, as Lucy said herself, we go from there."

Bristling at the other dragon, he ground out, "And if you felt from Xally what you just felt from my sister? Would this be enough?"

He cringed at the thought of his little sister going through what Lucy was and conceded to a point, "I'm not saying I don't understand Laxus, but you aren't doing anything productive right now and as much as this whole situation is fucked, I would like to see your little sister with my big brother. So get over yourself and focus on her instead of Bickslow's admitted idiocy."

In a very tense moment of agreement, the three impressively built mages made their way to Cristoff's suite to have a little privacy while they talked to the Shadowquip and hopefully, their missing Celestial Mage.

xXxXx

When Vander finally decided to answer his comm after Cristoff had tried to call him five separate times, he had a smug grin on his face, "Big bro, I was wondering when someone would try to find our little Starshine."

With a deadpanned look, his older Dragon Slayer brother answered easily, "Oh right because this is the first time I tried to call you."

Cristoff and Bickslow both winced when they heard their father's voice from where he had been doting on Lucy on one of their living room couches, "Which of my sons are you talking to, Vander?"

"Bixy and Cris decided to finally check on our little princess," was his easy response before the older Sound Mage with pale green eyes motioned for his youngest son to hand him the comm.

Knowing exactly what sort of mood Arman Pradesh was about to be in, Cristoff all but shoved the his comm to Bickslow who only had time to glare at him before he recognized the formal decorated Ambassador of Bosco tone that meant business, "Bickslow, I would like to hear your side of this quarrel and it had better be good."

Groaning as he saw the familiar golden silk of the beautiful Celestial Mage brush across his fathers arm letting him know that she was sitting right there but he couldn't talk to her directly, he pulled his visor from his face and kept his deep baritone as close to even as he could with the exasperation he felt, "I definitely did not say the correct thing when the most amazing woman I've ever met in my life made an incredibly difficult decision and offered me an out because she is selfless and understanding and she wanted to make sure I was comfortable even though that meant she wouldn't be. I would like to talk to her if she'll listen, Dad."

He watched his father's eyes soften before Lucy's softly smiling face came into view, her voice quiet, "Hi."

The Seith Mage couldn't help but let out a breath of relief before he matched her smile, "Hey, Kitten. Will you come back so I can apologize for being an idiot?"

Her smile widened a little before her lilting voice came through softly, her eyes swimming with sharp determination that told him whatever she was about to say wasn't something they were going to talk about because she had decided for herself, "I'm going to stay with Arman and Vander so Draco and I can work on my Dragon Slaying Magic, but you don't have anything to apologize for Bix. My emotions got the better of me and before you could even explain yourself, I was gone. It's no one's fault so there is nothing to be sorry for."

The blunette was trying to put on a brave face for her and it was surprisingly easy for him as he asked earnestly, "How long will that take?"

She gave an honest shrug before settling on, "Draco seems to think I'll be a natural and that it'll take no time at all since I already have a 'mastery' of my Celestial Magic. The hardest part of the process will be taking a piece of his soul and that's only because I'll have to get used to having a dragon to guide me and instincts that will be so...new to try and handle. It'll be really hard to get used to the heightened senses and urges, especially in a place full of so many unknowns."

Laxus' baritone called from where he had been shockingly quiet throughout the whole conversation, "All your stuff is here, Blondie. Are you just going to wear your bikini the whole time?"

With a roll of her eyes, she casually answered her brother's inquiry, "Actually, all my stuff is here. Van and I grabbed it shortly after I had to introduce myself to Arman-"

The oldest Pradesh's voice chastised her with a soft tone, "Please, Lucy, we're practically family already. You don't need to be so formal with me."

Her smile widened and beamed at the Sound Mage before she started again, "To Papa Pradesh since Vander couldn't rein in his emotions long enough to," glaring over the comm at the leather-clad Shadow Mage before smiling back down into Bickslow's deep red eyes, her voice lilting and bright, "I'll miss you while I'm here you know."

Rubbing his hand over his bottom lip, he gave her a lop-sided smile before his own deep drawl returned to him, "Yeah? I'll miss you more I think. Laxus will definitely try to kill me in my sleep now."

When her infectious laughter sounded through the comm, Bickslow could have swore his chest felt a hundred pounds lighter, "Poor Bixy, I'm betting you'll find some way to keep him at bay. I need you to stick around for awhile yet."

Raising his brow playfully, "Why's that?"

Shit-eating grin spread across her lips as she spoke playfully, "I'd miss my babies too much."

He couldn't help but break into his own easy laughter. This felt so right. Their easy back and forth full of laughter and teasing and easy smiles, and if she wasn't worried about next step of their relationship, he certainly wasn't going to either. She was absolutely right when she said their was no use getting worked up about things outside their control. While Bickslow had a less than shiny view as far as the fates go, he would take a page from Lucy's endless optimism.

His father's voice sounded, "Would you mind if I talked to my boys, Lucy darling?"

"Not at all." Giving the Seith Mage a brilliant smile, "Tell Cristoff goodbye for me and Laxus? I know you can hear me and you better not do anything stupid until I get back. I'll be able to go toe to toe with you when I do. I'll see you soon, Bickslow."

"I'll see you soon, la mia luce stellare."

She handed the the comm to the older Boscan with a peck of a kiss to his cheek before wrapping her arms around herself to walk outside and take a breath. She knew this was going to be one of the hardest things she's ever had to do and that there was a chance for this whole thing to backfire and leave she and Bickslow to be nothing more than a casual fling destined for nothing more than that but she wasn't going to spend her life shying away from things because they're hard. Not when there was someone worth the trouble on the other side of things.

She felt Vander's presence before she heard him as he stood next to her, his voice soft, "How're you doing, sugar?"

Letting a sigh, she stared over the Grass Sea fondly as her voice came through distant, "Honestly? I don't think I'll know until I can look at the man I'm falling in love with and find out if I have to give him up."

He wrapped his arm around her slight frame and leaned his chin on the top of her head and held her as she finally let her tears fall.

xXxXxXxXx

A week of solid training even more intense than the year between Fairy Tail's disbandment had been rough to say the least. Lucy was crouched in her strappy black sports bra and a pair of black and dark blue spandex shorts with scales of the deepest blue with a few scattered golden littering among them covered her from just below her ears down to the backs of her hand and down her sides, her nails elongated golden talons as she smirked down at the Shadowquip, her fangs poking through her pouty lips as she spoke smugly, "Pinned ya again, Red. I'm starting to think you're losing your touch."

In a flurry of motion and a shadow jump later, Vander switch their positions before poking the end of her nose, "My touch is just fine, Starshine."

Rolling her golden eyes at the youngest Pradesh, she shoved him off her body with an ease that still made the tall, lean man shiver before bounding over and looking up into a pair of swirling gilded eyes eyes attached to her immaculately dressed dragon in his spirit form, her voice antsy, "Well? Can I please get back to my job now? The rest of the team will be landing in Joya like right now and I would kind of like to be there," giving the man a toothy grin, the points of her fangs pressing into her lips as she cooed at him, "Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease, you know I'm ready. I have perfect control of my Slaying Magic and Dragon Force, I've adjusted to the influx of magic and the rush I get under the stars, I listen to my dragon and I almost have Celestial Gate travel down. I've been working my ass off from the time I wake up until late in the night when you let me sleep and I haven't even left this house once since I've been here!"

His deep voice was smooth as he crossed his arms over his chest, "Okay, okay, I get it. You're ready to go back to Joya but I want you call me out the moment you get there or I'll come out myself in dragon form and cause a scene."

She couldn't help the second roll of her eyes as she gave the tall man a few pats to his arm and she dropped her dragon force, her voice almost bored as she made her way back into the house to get ready to have arguably the most important moment of her life, "Don't worry Draco, I will. I know Cristoff has been looking forward to seeing you again."

He watched as her long hair disappeared through the doorway before Vander's casual tone sounded from where he had come to stand next to the spirit with his arms crossed over his chest, "They grow up so fast don't they?"

"I still don't understand how you managed to score a Soul-Bond with my daughter," his voice flat as he stared at the now-smiling Shadowquip Mage drolly.

"It's a great story. You should have Starshine tell you some time," before vanishing and leaving the spirit to roll his eyes and return to the Spirit World to wait for Lucy to call him out again. He wasn't kidding about coming out on his own. He would be watching to make sure she got where she needed to be because for some reason, her Gate travel was finicky and she would almost always fall through her gates as they materialized above the ground instead of like a doorway she could step through. She of course just assured him that she would just crouch when she summoned the Gate to solve this problem and Vander didn't help when he told her it made her look like a badass when she fell like an avenging angel through a golden portal in the sky. Even he had to admit, if that was her only hiccup after only a week with her Dragon Slaying Magic, she was a gifted mage to say the least.

Lucy wasn't particularly surprised to see Vander's lithe body sprawled across her bed when she turned around with a towel wrapped around her body about to take a shower as Virgo packed the few things she kept here. She was thankful that Arman let her stay in Bickslow's bedroom where she could sleep in his familiar cedar and sandalwood scent. She didn't tell anyone, not even Draco, that being in his room was the only thing that got her through the first night with her dragon soul for fear they would make her stay longer. Not that she didn't love it here, especially after she met Farron and Kaleb a few nights ago and almost fainted when the oldest Pradesh child told her she would make an excellent ambassador for Fiore. No, she loved being in a home full of love, laughter and acceptance but she missed her team, she missed her brother and she missed her Seith Mage.

Her voice was bright as she dropped her towel and stepped into the shower, calling to the handsome Boscan, "Are you coming with me to Joya or do you have to leave, Red?"

She should have known he wouldn't stay in the bedroom as he heard his voice from right outside the glass of her shower. The man loved trouble and she attracted it in spades so any time he didn't have meetings or wasn't running errands with Arman, they were together. He helped her with the finer points and mechanics of the parts of her magic she hadn't been able to grasp right away since at least a part of their magics were alike. It almost made Lucy think the reason her gates were almost always holes in the air instead of doorways was somehow Vander's doing.

"Dad is sending me with you until I get pulled back here. He and Cristoff are both suspicious of King Illium so I'll be there to assassinate the king of Joya if need be," his voice easy as he started drawing in the condensation of the glass from the heat of her shower.

"That fills me with warm fuzzies...I already had this sneaking suspicion that I was getting into something more than just an easy go here-do this-go home job. I have this particular knack for being a key piece to evil plots that need to be foiled."

"At least you're self aware, sugar."

There were a few minutes filled with an easy back and forth of melodies between the two before Lucy quieted and her voice came out small, "I'm nervous to head back, Vander."

He knew she wasn't talking about nefarious plots anymore but he also knew there was no point in the little blonde working herself in a tizzy this close to finding out if she and Bickslow were mates so he did his best to pull her laughter from her lips as she got dressed in a pair of low-slung blue and gold tribal harem pants and a cropped white high neck sleeveless shirt. She had decided to let her hair air dry and let it to it's natural wave around her hips before braiding the her bangs to the side to keep them out of her face.

After an hour and a very weepy goodbye by both Arman and Lucy, the Celestial Mage steeled herself. She let Vander go first since she needed to visualize where she wanted to go when she used her Gate Magic for now and then summoned her gate to follow her Soul-Bond.

xXxXxXx

"Well I'm telling you, Ever, that this is where we are going to be waiting until Blondie comes back from Bosco. This is her mission and we aren't gonna do it without her," Laxus snapped back the brunette who was complaining about the bugs that were eating her alive being this close to the shallow marshy water where they had been waiting after the yacht dropped them off barely an hour ago.

With a huff, she snapped out her fan and started fanning herself out of pure haughty sass.

Laying out with his hands behind his head in the grass, Bickslow was thankful he didn't have to wear his visor as a light breeze ruffled his hair across his forehead, his voice easy, "It could be worse, Ever."

With a roll of her eyes, she obliged the Seth Mage, "Could it?"

With a smirk, he drawled, "You could be a neurotic prostitute with a stone cold heart...Oh wait," leaning up on his elbows in mock surprise, his voice airy, "You already are."

Before she could scramble over to the cackling blunette, he had effortlessly backflipped and twisted away from where she was laying in the grass to lay across his babies, his head propped up on his elbow as he laid out on his side, "Gotta be quicker than that, Medusa."

"I can show how it's done if you want, honey."

Vander's smooth voice came from directly behind the Fairy Mage as she shrieked and clutched her chest, "GET AWAY FROM ME YOU HORRIBLE BOSCANS!"

The chorus of laughter that erupted from the rest of the mages was quickly interrupted when a golden tear formed right next to where Bickslow was floating with his babies before Lucy's crouched form fell from it in a whoosh, effectively silencing everyone save Vander, who was thoroughly amused with the looks of stupor on each of the Fairy's faces as he continued to laugh.

When she straightened, she sent her nakama a beaming toothy smile. The new point canines glinting under the bright sunlight as she spoke casually, "Hey, guys."

Ever immediately threw her arms around the blonde, her voice filled with the relief she so desperately felt now that she was joined by another female again, "Thank Mavis you're here, Lu. I have missed you and the estrogen you provide this group of neanderthals."

Freed's offended voice sounded from his very obviously upset face, "I am not a neanderthal."

Shooting the man a glare from over Lucy's shoulder, her voice a hiss, "You are not above them Freed Justine."

Giving the brunette a genuine squeeze before pulling back, her voice bright as she chattered, "I missed you too. I didn't even get to do any shopping while I was away. Of course that didn't stop Arman and Farron from bringing me some of the traditional clothing that Bosco is known for," stepping back to show off her new favorite pants that were equal parts cute, comfortable and functional, "like these. I managed to convince Farron to bring me a set of the genie-looking outfits in a pretty green that I think you'll really like-"

Laxus suddenly crossed the little clearing to put his hands on either side of her face before pulling her lip up to inspect her little fangs, his voice deep, "That'll take some getting used to," before wrapping her up in a tight hug.

Her arms snaked around his body before she mumbled into his chest, "I missed you so much, Laxus." While she was able to be around people without her senses getting overwhelmed, Lucy's dragon immediately recognized him as kin and she was quickly taking in the soothing scent of thunderstorms and it caused her first, completely involuntary, purr to rumble through her chest. The noise surprised her enough to lean her head back to look up at the hulking blonde with owlish eyes before the two burst into belly laughter.

When her melodic laughter finally died down, she immediately pulled away to look for Bickslow. He was the sole reason she spent the last week with Draco killing herself to make sure she had control enough to be around him again.

Oddly enough, she smelled him before she saw him and when they finally made eye contact, her warm chocolate meeting his deep red, she let out a breath of relief and made her way over to where the towering man was waiting for her, his hand rubbing the back of his neck in a moment of uncertainty that rarely hit the Seith Mage, "Hey, Starlight. I like the fangs. They're kind of a turn on actually."

Putting a hand on her hip, she made a show giving him a big, goofy grin before quirking her brow up and teasing, "I haven't tried them out yet. Want to be my new pincushion, sweetheart?"

"Depends. Will you be gentle with me?" His eyes were shining with mirth as he drawled.

An airy chuckle left her pouty lips before she gave him a devious grin, "Probably not, but you seem like the type to like a good rough fu-"

"Just shut up and kiss him already, Starshine. Everyone else will turn their back to give you some privacy. I won't but maybe that'll make it hotter for you," the youngest Pradesh yelled playfully to the little Celestial Mage.

She granted the deeply tanned man hovering just in front of her a genuine smile, "Well, what do you say, Bix? You ready to do this thing?"

"I've been ready to do this thing for awhile, Starlight," was all he breathed out before ducking and taking her lips with his, his left hand on the exposed skin of her hips and his right tangled in her hair to cradle the back of her head.

He would have pulled back to ask if...well, if they were mates and this wasn't about to be the last time he could bare to hold her but he got his answer from the overwhelming hunger that pulled him in for more. That and the way she growled while she pulled him down just to wrap her legs around his waist and deepen the kiss in an ungodly arousing animalistic show of desire.

Her thoughts were a frantic jumble of her dragon's need to claim, to dominate and test her mate, and the sheer elation she felt at knowing that while she had chosen him the moment Plue crawled up on his shoulder, her dragon had also chosen him. She wouldn't have to give him up ever and that was the high she was currently riding as she ran her tongue along the seam of his lips to demand entrance. His lips split into a smile as he let out a few breathy laughs which was all she needed before her tongue was taking in his intoxicating taste of sweet red wine and bittersweet chocolate before he leaned his forehead against hers so they could catch their breath, "Thank...gods..."

She pressed another kiss to his lips before trailing more down to his chin, "I kind of...already...knew," she breathed as she ran her tongue along his pulse point. Her dragon was elated and Lucy moaned at the way his blood was pumping under her ministrations.

"As much as I love watching you play tonsil hockey with my sister, there was a reason we came to Joya," Laxus' harsh tone was at odds with the shadow of a smile curling at his lips.

Vander gave him a mock look of confusion, "There was? You mean to tell me this wasn't the most elaborate attempt to finally land Bix a woman who wasn't a brainless bimbo with boobs?"

The Lightning Slayer rolled his eyes before waving his arm to get them moving.

"Wait! Where's Cristoff? I have to call out Draco and I..." the moment she said his name, the Dragon Spirit had appeared and wrapped the little blonde in a tight hug, petting her hair as he whispered how proud he is of her, "...want to make sure he sees him." Unceremoniously pushing the broad spirit with long hair like the night sky that she honestly couldn't tell if it was black or deep blue an arms length away. The Dragon Spirit had a bipolar personality that made him a militant, hard man with a dry sense of humor while simultaneously being a clingy, over-emotional father only to Lucy and Cristoff.

When she finally spotted the Lunar Slayer coming from the little shack of a building at the beginning of the pier, her dragon instinctively knew that he was kin and closer than that, a true draconian-sibling.

The closer he got to the group, the more prominent his minty smell became and when he was close enough for her to hug him, her nose immediately wrinkled and she blurted out, "Gods, you smell like sex and mints. I don't...I don't know how-...what I'm supposed to do with that."

Completely ignoring her outburst, he wrapped her in a bear hug that rivaled Bickslow's before nuzzling into her hair, his deep voice soothing, "Welcome to the family, Princess. I'm so happy to have another little sister."

She chuckled before pulling back and walking back over to put her arm around her mate's, gods did that ever sound nice, waist to watch the emotional reunion. Bickslow's easy voice teased his little dragon, "What happened to your shoes, Starlight?"

Wiggling her toes in the grass, she gave a little shrug before answering, "I haven't had to wear shoes for the passed three weeks and I like being barefoot."

"My babies! I want to hold you both at the same time," Draco's smooth voice cut in before motioning for her to come to his free side impatiently as his other arm stayed firmly around Cristoff's comically larger frame with a very 'proud dad' face.

Giving Bickslow an apologetic smile before she rolled her eyes to the Celestial Dragon Spirit and walked over to be pulled into a crushing hug, Cristoff's cheek smashed against the spirits right side and Lucy's cheek smashed into his left with his arms around their necks in a vice-like embace.

"Is this an open group hug? Can anyone participate?"

"Don't even think about, shadow boy," the dragon gruffed out as he rubbed his face against his children's.

Finally managing to get her hand on his jaw, she struggled to push his face away as she huffed out, "Don't...you think...this...is...a bit...much!"

Giving her finger a little warning bite and a low growl, she immediately lowered her hand and nuzzled an apology into his hair before he finally let them loose. Both slayer's with beaming smiles on their faces as he did.

"Now we just need to get Cris a mate and then Arman and I can have little dragons running underfoot. You and Bickslow should start immediately so we don't have to wait," he said matter-of-factly as he crossed his arms over his chest, obviously very proud of his assessment.

Laxus practically threw her to far over his shoulder before he started walking down a path leading towards the very large, very steep Dragako Mountains with his sister's frame draped over his broad shoulder, his deep baritone rough, "Nope. Not happening on this trip so get your asses moving. We've got a mountain to climb."

"Put me down you big oaf. I'm not going to get pregnant," leaning on the palm of her hand as her elbow braced her upright, her voice even, "Charming's got me covered, right?"

"You seem to get hefted around a lot, Princess," was the Lunar Slayer's teasing reply.

Rolling her eyes as a smile split her lips, her voice lilting and bright, "Yeah, yeah, but at least this way I get a free ride up the mountain of death."

"That's right, my little star. You are a dragoness, these men should treat you as such."

"Goodbye, Draco. Thank you for coming out and I'll be sure to call you out tomorrow to make sure everything is okay," bristling when Laxus purposefully hefted her higher for no other reason than to jostle her, which earned the hulking man a swift kick to the gut that had him doubled over, clutching her legs for support.

He wheezed out, "What...the...fuck...Blondie."

Ruffling his hair as she gave him a sugar-sweet smile before bouncing in front of her dragon, "Seriously though. Thank you for everything and I will call you out tomorrow."

He gave her a wide closed-mouth smile before cupping her cheek, which she instantly leaned into, and disappeared back into the Spirit World.

Vander was snickering from his spot next to Bickslow, his voice low so the two blonde dragons didn't hear as she told the Lightning and Lunar Slayer's about her week of training but full of its usual mirth, "At least you already know Draco. Could be worse as far as in-laws go."

"Have you met Draco, Van? I'm pretty sure the passed thirty minutes of my life have been a hallucination between becoming a Dragon Slayer's mate and Draco being...affectionate. How was she? I mean, for the training. I always liked watching her train. Little thing is a ridiculously quick study."

Giving his brother a clap on the back, he answered with an easy, "Dude, she just became a kick-ass Celestial Dragon Slayer in a week and she's done it with a gritty determination that had Kaleb raising a brow. Quick study doesn't even begin to cover it."


	10. Step Ten: Hunt the Dogs

Step Ten: Hunt the Dogs

By the time the group of mages had made their way to the first check-point for their trip, the sun was starting to set behind the sharp peaks and Lucy had called out Virgo to help Ever and her set up their camp while Freed set up runes along the perimeter. The ever curious Rune Mage was shooting the little blonde question after question about the process and mechanics behind becoming a Dragon Slayer which only made her smile widen as she answered them cheerfully, thankful to be back into the regular swing of mundane things without a dragon looming over her shoulder.

By the time all the tents were set up and the fire was going with a pot of thick chunky stew, Lucy had wandered off to bask in the starlight coming from the crystal clear night sky on a ledge just out of the camps line of sight. She could feel watchful eyes on her body. "You don't have to lurk like a perv anymore you know, you can eye me up out in the open now," her voice mirthful as she continued to soak in the power from her precious stars with her neck craned back and her eyes shut. It had been easy to tamp down her dragon while surrounded by other people and her brothers, so she thought nothing of having some company under the night sky.

His little laughs had her lips pulling into a smile as he climbed up next to her with ease, "So this is what it's like to have a girlfriend. Always knowing when I'm creeping around, sprouting fangs, falling from the sky like a fucking barefoot gypsy battle angel," before pulling her easily between his legs so her back was pressed to his chest and he was leaning back on one of his hands to let her take in her element.

Pulling his free hand around so she could nibble on the pads of fingers playfully as she laughed at his words before her voice came through light, "Funny you should say that actually. Vander said I looked like a 'bad-ass avenging angel' when I gate-hop. Draco smacked him upside the head for it." She was trying to stay calm. Draco had explained what the mating would do to her and her libido and she already knew she had keener senses at night. Right now every single one of them was trying to get her to tear his clothes from his body and ride him into oblivion, her dragon being the most adamant supporter of this course of action. Maybe she should have thought about having his company under the night sky.

Running his hands over her skin absently without any thought other than satiating his need to touch her, Bickslow looked up into the inky blue of the heavens before asking in genuine curiosity, "Did you ever figure out what happened with you and Vander's souls?"

The question brought a frown to her face, not because she was upset he asked but because they really didn't know much beyond that it was permanent, "Draco calls it a Soul-Bond but we don't anything more than he and I are bound to each other. The Spirit King said maybe it was when he said 'where I go, she goes and where she goes, I go' caused our souls to exchange in a literal take on the words. Draco thinks its because my soul is always reaching out to help other souls and Vander's magic makes him...needier than most that the Celestial Magic within me wanted to help him so badly, it took his words in a sense that created the bond in more of a 'whenever you need me, I'll always be there' way. That coupled with the fact that on a basic level our magics are extremely similar and compatible must have made it easier. We just don't know but he and I pretty much always know where the other is and we can always get to each other. If one of us concentrates hard enough, we can pull the other to us. It's actually really fascinating to me that Vander and I share this mystic Soul-Bond, Cristoff and I share a draconian-sibling bond that makes us extremely sensitive to each other and you and I are a mated pair, or at least we will be as soon as this mission is over."

Without an ounce of ill-will, he teased, "Do you have any other super intense, life-binding connections to any of my other siblings?"

Looking up into his mesmerizing deep red eyes with her own faintly glowing golden eyes, she spoke evenly, "I think Emzadi and I will be shield-sisters and I'm pretty sure Farron is ready to convince Hisui to make me an ambassador."

Shaking his head half in awe half in mirth, he added to her list, "And Vander's half-convinced Kaleb is trying to get you to join the White Sea, you have my father wrapped around your finger and Xally would have been the first person you would have fallen head over heels for."

Holding up her index finger, she mused playfully, "Do you think Papa Pradesh is wrapped around this finger or this one, " switching her index finger to her pinky. When she felt his chest vibrate with his low chuckles, she closed her eyes again, perfectly content to stay on this ledge, pressed against the sexiest man she could of dreamed of as her mate under the bright clear night sky.

That is until she started getting restless again and she need to move. Trying to satiate the urge, the new Dragon Slayer started to fidget and wiggle until Bickslow's deep voice washed over her and she became decidedly hungry, "If you wanted to have a little fun, all you had to do was ask, Kitten."

Before he had really thought about his teasing words, Lucy flipped in his lap and pinned him down with her hands on his chest. The blonde was humming with energy, with power and he was hard the moment her gilded, slitted eyes, faintly glowing beneath her thick lashes, met his. They held a hunger he was more than excited to test. He loved some rough foreplay and he had a very firm suspicion that even before the dragon soul entered her body, the Celestial spitfire was good for it. Bickslow also had it on good authority that dragoness' were a particularly excellent brand of lover and he was more than eager to find that out for himself.

The Seith Mage wound his hand around the back of her neck and brought her down to his chest and took her lips in a hard motion that was far rougher than he had intended but instead of shying away, he was rewarded with the sexiest sound he's ever heard as she growled into his mouth and bit his lower lip, the sharp points of her fangs spurring him to take more and grip her harder. When she started grinding her core over his long-since fully hardened member something in him snapped.

The moment her back hit the unforgiving rock, she pulled his hair at the back of his head. Hard. The smooth tanned skin of his neck was exposed and she was desperate to taste him, her voice was husky with need as her lips trailed up the column of his throat, "You're so tempting."

His hips were moving in hard, slow motions and it was infuriating and perfect as she bit down at the juncture of his neck and shoulder hard enough to leave a mark but not to draw blood before she laved over the skin to soothe it, pulling throaty moans from him as the ache between her thighs grew unbearable.

Until all of sudden, she was no longer beneath the hard body of her mate with her hands fisted in his silky blue hair and Vander was smirking down at her from where he was leaned back on his hands in his tent to her left. She growled out at the interruption before Cristoff's easy voice sounded from her right and soothed her anger, "Naughty, Princess. You can't fuck Bickslow on a rock ledge in the middle of the night unless you plan on staying on that rock ledge for a very long time."

Groaning as she ran her fingers through her loose hair, she pushed herself up on her elbows to meet the Lunar Slayer's deep blue eyes, her voice tight with her obvious sexual frustration as she blew a stray strand of golden hair out of her face, "This is going to be the longest mission of my life."

"You got that right, soul sister," the Shadowquip's voice patronizing as he patted the top of her head. The amount of amusement the little Celestial beauty brought into his life was endless and even he had to admit since they had bonded, it was easier for him to sleep at night and Voidwalk. She was an amazing addition to his family all around.

Rolling her eyes as she ducked from his hand, the Celestial Slayer turned her attention back to Cristoff, "Can I go get him now? I'm feeling much...less inclined to jump him...a little."

The two brother's easy laughter made her feel better, centered and more grounded as the bulkier of the two smiled down at her, his silky voice light, "Let's go get big bro and I'll put you both to sleep so you don't need to be babysat."

Just before the two Dragon Slayer's left the tent, they heard the youngest Pradesh pout playfully, "Everyone gets tucked in but me."

"Boohoo, no one likes a cock block, Red," was Lucy's quick retort before she left the raven-haired Shadow Mage to his easy laughter to go find Bickslow.

The walk out of camp was easy and she was thankful for Cristoff's calming presence as she tamped down the animal urges she was having. Just before they were about to run into the Seith Mage, Cristoff leaned toward her, his voice low, "Just because you can't have sex doesn't mean the two of you can't have fun, Princess."

Her eyes widened with realization as she hugged the behemoth of a man, her voice bright as she leaned up on her tiptoes to give him a chaste kiss to his cheek, "You brilliant, wonderful man. Fifty points to you for making up for your very rude but necessary interruption."

He gave her a slanted smile, a devious look in his eye that was purely brotherly as he looked down at her, "I'm still putting you to sleep tonight."

Rolling her eyes, she amended, "Twenty points and you still have some making up to do."

Holding his hands up in surrender, his voice was light with play as Bickslow came around the corner with a very confused look on his face, "Hey now, I'm just trying to help you out, little sister."

"So one minute I'm having the time of my life, sexy little vixen underneath me and I'm thinking 'fuck yeah, I'm about to score' and all of a sudden," his hand moved in a little 'poof' motion, "she's gone and I'm eating rock with a painful throbbing in my pants and nothing but the faint disturbing thought that it's my brother's fault," the blunette's voice was light with a smile on his face as he scooped the giggling blonde up, his arms wrapping around her midsection and lifting her like she weighed nothing to press little kisses over her ear, pulling sweet airy giggles from her as she hooked her ankles together behind his back, "You wouldn't know anything about that, would you, Starlight?"

Looking over the pair with a warm shine to his eyes, Cristoff was more than ecstatic for his brother to have found someone that complimented him so well, adored his babies like they were her own and took the time to understand his magic even before they were together but it made his heart ache a little for his own still unknown mate. For now, he would just take things as they come and help his siblings as best he could. Gods help Bickslow when the mission is over and Lucy's dragon takes over.

Before she could really register they were moving, she leaned her head on Bickslow's incredibly comfortable shoulder and smiled over to Cristoff before the Lunar Slayer spoke quietly, "Sleep peacefully, Princess."

His eyes widened a little when she smiled back at him and answered softly, "You too, bigger brother," before succumbing to sleep in her mate's arms.

The older Pradesh looked to his little brother with one of his brows raised, his voice quiet, "That's new."

"Probably something to do with both of us being Dragon Slayer's born of the night sky and draconian-siblings," he answered a little too quickly as Bickslow smirked back at him knowingly.

xXx

When Lucy woke up the next morning, she felt amazing and the fact that she had become a human blanket over the the smooth toned body of one deeply tanned, incredibly handsome Boscan Seith Mage, wasn't even taken into account yet. Running her hands to trace over the wolves that sat low on his hip, she couldn't help but wonder what they tasted like. Carefully sliding her body down, dressed in a thin white tank top and a pair if silky panties, she bit back a moan as her nipples brushed down the ridges of his body until her breath was dancing across the skin of his hip. The low, husky tone of his voice made her eyes roll back and she felt the silk between her legs grow uncomfortable with every word he spoke, "What're you doing down there, Starlight?"

Pressing teasing light kisses over the planes of his stomach, she rasped out, "Exploring, sweet sexy man of mine."

When she ran her fangs along the tanned skin just over the waistband of his briefs, his hips bucked into her and his voice was heavy with arousal, "You're making this very hard."

Before she could make a comment about how that was kind of the whole point, a deep baritone broke the moment, "I'm three seconds away from sending lightning in there and I don't care who I hit. Get the hell out of that tent, Blondie. We gotta move." Laxus' deep tone had very effectively killed the immediate mood but Lucy knew she would have to deal with the ache low in her belly until they made camp for the night further up the mountain. Pressing her forehead over the black ink on his hip, she took a few steadying breaths as she started naming each of the 88 constellations out loud earning her throaty chuckles from the man beneath her.

His voice was lighter than she could have managed in her frazzled state, "Don't worry, Bossman. We are going to get dressed and come out like good little boys and girls do."

Lucy knew her big brother was rolling his eyes as he scoffed and walked away from the tent. Crawling back up the Seith Mage's body, she hovered over his face expectantly, her lips grazing his unintentionally as spoke quietly, "I'm ready for the show, sweetheart. Front row seats and all."

His lopsided grin made her insides melt before he opened his eyes and she was met with the most spectacular glow of mesmerizing eyes and she could feel it, the way his magic wrapped around her soul like a blanket. It was very different from the way it felt when he took possession of her soul all those years ago. This made her feel giddy and loved. Before he could get out the words his lips obviously split to speak, her mouth was on his in a slow kiss that had her toes curling. His hands moved from her hips to either side of her face before she pulled away and smiled down at him, her voice its usual lilting bright tone, "Good morning, Bix."

He didn't think he would ever get used to the way her soul welcomed him, or the way she looked when her eyes met his and he was finding out very quickly that he was perfectly fine with that. "Morning, Kitten."

They fell into an easy back and forth as Bickslow pulled on a pair of dark khaki shorts, a dark red t-shirt and his brown boots and Lucy pulled on another pair of low slung red and silver harem pants, a tight black tank that ended above her bellybutton and pair of mid-shin high black gladiator sandals. She called Cancer out to pull the sides of her hair back in a tangle of small braids before he braided the rest of her hair back in a thick rope down her back to give her a kind of bohemian warrior look.

Lucy had called out Virgo to help them pack away the camp when Nix popped out and lifted the small woman into a hug, his deep velvety voice child-like, "Why don't you ever call me out anymore, Princess? We have such good chemistry and I've been good since the day on the boat. I didn't even spy on you in the shower once."

Her voice was dripping with sarcasm as she returned the Firebird Spirit's affection, "Wow, I'm so proud of you, Nix. I'm sure that was very hard for you."

He gave a few chipper nods of his head before setting her down and crossing his arms over his bare chest, "I've decided I want to accompany you up the mountain. Loke is being unbearable and Draco hogs the Reflecting Pool."

Going back to help her pinkette spirit with one of the tents, her voice was bored as the rest of her team watched their interaction, "Is that why you've been so good? Because you if you didn't really have a choice but to be good, then I don't know if that actually classifies as being good."

Without breaking his carefree demeanor, he took the thick canvas from her hands to fold it for her, "What? No, of course not. I learned my lesson but I'm bored. Cetus won't let Hydra near me anymore and I really need to work out some pent up energy."

"Are you really surprised that Cetus won't let you near his little sister? Actually, I'm more surprised she hasn't figured out a way around him. She's pretty good at getting what she wants." The Celestial Mage had moved to start stacking the other tents for Virgo before Ever finally snapped out of her distracted state to help the little blonde with a smile on her face. The Fairy Mage certainly didn't mind the company of the shirtless, buff and very sexy spirit. Phoenix had a very classically handsome face with Roman features, strong jaw, prominent straight nose, full lips and sharp brows that made his striking blue eyes stand out and it made him very popular with the female population. Sometimes Lucy would call him out against female mages just as a distraction and more often than not, it was a very sound tactic. The spirit refused to wear anything except his very form fitting black leather pants and he had a never-ended pool of energy that fueled his impressive Fire magic and even more helpfully, the healing magic he provided her when she was on solo missions. Unlike the Fire Slayer, Phoenix' fire magic made him passionate, caring and almost comically sensitive to his emotions and those of the people around him. In a way, both he and her best friend shared a clueless innocence and constant need for stimulation that made her cringe to think about calling the two out on a mission. She made the mistake of bringing Nix out to see if Natsu could eat his flames and the two ended up setting the training grounds on fire and the grounds are made of fire-resistant dirt. Dirt for the love of Mavis.

Vander slid up next her, openly eyeing up her Firebird Spirit, "How long are you keeping him out, sugar?" His deep wine eyes were watching the golden-skinned man as he threw the heavy rolls of canvas onto his shoulder and he pulled a rare laugh from her stoic Maid Spirit.

Giving the raven-haired man a knowing smirk, she shoved him with her shoulder, her voice airy, "Who knows, Red. He's apparently got a lot of pent of energy. He's pretty oblivious and so far, he's only shown interest in me but I'm sure you're up for the challenge. I'll tell you right now though, Nix is a marshmallow at heart so hold off if you can. I don't want him hurt because you are a free-floating enigma made of pure sex and devious thoughts."

When she saw his eyes grow more determined, she pinched his side with a laugh, "Actually, leave him alone. I'll call out Hydra tonight at camp and you can see if she tickles your fancy. She's about as bad as you are." Mumbling under her breath, "Ridiculous Water Spirit..."

A slow curling smile spread across his lips before he answered smoothly, "I'll be sure to come back and hold you to that, Starshine," before he gave her a wink and disappeared.

"That little shit is probably going to have wild sex with a whole bunch of people and I just set him up with one of my spirits. Gods that is annoying."

After Virgo had gone back, Nix had become a permanent fixture at Cristoff's side for the whole grueling walk up the side of the steep mountain while Ever's face was set in a permanent scowl as she fanned herself rather aggressively, Freed seemed completely unaffected by the heat and the high grade of the terrain they were traversing as he and Laxus held an easy conversation about the finer points of Joyan government's seat in Opalle and Lucy had managed to make it halfway up before asking Bickslow if she could have a piggyback ride that quickly became her new favorite way of travel.

"How's the view from up there, Kitten?"

Her mate's rich voice pulled her attention from the rocky landscape as she smiled and tightened her thighs around his ribs to push herself just high enough that she could look over the top of his mohawk, "It's pretty nice actually but I would stare at a wall for hours if it meant I didn't have to walk," holding her feet out in front of him before wiggling her toes, "because I just spent the last week of my life dead lifting shit I shouldn't be able to and running for miles a day. I also despise mountains. I'll always take a free ride from a good-looking man instead."

Raising his brows as he turned his head to look up at her face, he drawled teasingly, "Oh yeah? That doesn't exactly set the right mood for the rest of our lives together, Cosplayer. How about you'll always take a free ride from this good-looking man in particular and we can call it even."

Her eyes widened a little as a faint blush spread across her cheeks when she realized just how poorly she worded that before conceding softly, "Yeah, that would probably be best. You can actually put me down if you want. For some reason my butt is going numb and it's not exactly the kind of tingly feeling I like."

With an easy laugh, Momo and Mimi flew in front of the pair, "That's probably because my babies are made of wood and they weren't made to be sat on."

Smacking his chest lightly before climbing down from her very high perch and cradling her babies, "I'm so sorry, Mimi...Momo. If I'd known Bixy was using you to keep my butt up, I would have gotten down sooner."

Their little chirps were happy and light before they started tumbling around each other in a sort of silly dance to make the already beaming blonde laugh. Muu quickly buried himself in her chest, nuzzling with little coos as she caressed the wood of his totem lovingly, her voice much softer, "My little Cutie Pie! You've been so quiet, I almost thought you forgot about me."

The little totem immediately flew up to her face to bump her cheek like he was pressing kisses to the giggling woman's face before she cupped the sweet young soul to rub her nose against his carved face, "Stars, you make it so easy to love you."

Looking up at the Seith Mage's openly gaping face with a wide smile, she laced her hand with his before moving to catch up with the rest of their team, singing under her breath the whole way.

They had made it to a relatively flat section of the road to stop to eat and thanks to Cristoff's incredibly handy ability to create fresh, cool water, the whole team was feeling much better about walking the rest of the way up the mountain in the harsh heat of the afternoon sun. Phoenix didn't understand why everyone was so upset, "The sun feels amazing. It's so bright and warm. It makes my blood boil and I almost wish I could get a taste."

Bickslow's chest rumbled from behind her back as he spoke to the spirit gazing longingly up to the sky, "Careful there, Icarus. Nothing good ever comes from flying too close to the sun."

As if in deep thought, Lucy watched her spirits face wrinkle before stating matter-of-factly, "I would come back. Probably take about a month, but I think it would be worth it."

Leaning her head back to take in the Seith Mage's scent, her voice was distant as she closed her eyes and his arms wrapped around her shoulders, "What would happen? I mean, you've never had to rise from the ashes with me before."

Speaking excitedly in his deep baritone, the Firebird Spirit turned his bright blue gaze to his mage, "I'd be reborn in my phoenix state where I would have to stay in for probably a week before I could take my human form. It would be much less powerful though. I'd essentially age from a toddler to an adult within the following few weeks until I was back to my full form," opening his arms wide to signify that the built, tanned and toned body was his full form before giving the blonde a toothy smile.

At the prospect of seeing a toddler Phoenix, Lucy's eyes sparkled with something Bickslow didn't quite know how to take as she gushed, "Oh my stars! I bet you would just be the most adorable little baby ever! I am definitely not supportive of this whole taste the sun plan and I definitely don't want you to die but I would be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to seeing that, Nix. You are just too cute to pass that up."

"Technically I wouldn't die, Princess. You know we can't really die."

Glaring over at the grown man like he was a child that had said something offensive, the little blonde scolded, "But you still feel pain and I would have to say that dying is painful so let's hold off on that, okay?"

Easily agreeing with his mage, Nix plucked her from the tanned arms she was cradled in to wrap her in a too-tight hug, his voice the odd mix of deeply masculine with a childish air that only he had sounded softly next to her ear, "Of course, Princess Lucy. I'm so glad you found my key. I've never had a mage care so much about me before."

Her initial irritation with the beast of a spirit quickly melted away into genuine affection as she hugged his broad shoulders. They stayed like that for a few minutes before Lucy cleared her throat, her voice gentle, "Uh, Nix? I think you can put me down now. We should get moving if we want to make it to the next checkpoint before dark."

Which is how the next week and half went; they would wake up, pack camp, walk until they had to stop for lunch then continue to walk until the hit next checkpoint set by Lucy and Freed then collapse after setting up camp. Vander would pop in every now and then to rile someone up enough to need a quick escape before disappearing again. Laxus still gave Bix a stern look before he would follow the little golden Dragon Slayer into their tent and he always gave the Lightning Dragon a cheeky wink before giving his mate's toned ass a pinch and disappearing beneath the thick canvas. Overall, the trip so far had been uncomfortable but not unbearable. Unless you were Evergreen, who desperate for a real bed, with real walls around her and a real shower.

When Freed and Lucy both shared a look over their breakfast, the Rune Mage gave her a quirk of a sly grin before nodding to the practically wiggling woman. Before his head had really ducked any lower than usual, she had burst from her seat and made the poor Fairy Mage throw her plate at the outburst, "I have a surprise!"

As the brunette tried to catch her breath, she gave the bouncing blonde a halfhearted glare before huffing out, "You mean the heart attack before breakfast you just gave me wasn't the surprise?"

Completely unfazed by her scathing tone, she grabbed her hands and joyously bubbled out, "We'll be staying at an inn tonight! There's a little village with a natural hot spring as our next checkpoint and won't that be amazing. Steamy water chock full of natural minerals, comfy beds to sleep in and booze to fill our tummies. We've planned to arrive late tonight, spend tomorrow relaxing before heading down the mountain."

The instant the word 'inn' came from Lucy's lips, Ever had pulled her into a bouncy hug, her voice dreamy when the blonde finally finished talking, "Oh you wonderful woman you. Have I mentioned how glad I am that you're here because I am really happy you're here."

"When Freed and I were planning our course, I figured the springs would be a very good half-way point over the mountains and I love a good soak. I do not let those opportunities pass."

Before she could really register being released, Evergreen was smacking the men into action with her fan, her voice left absolutely no room for argument, "Get up! Let's get this place packed and let's get moving. I can already feel the sweet soothing waters!"

Lucy quickly gained her balance and chuckled at her girlfriends enthusiasm before calling Virgo out and getting the camp put away so they could start their final walk up the mountain's steepest stretch. She didn't tell the Fairy Mage that in the hopes that her 'eyes on the prize' attitude would keep her too preoccupied to care and complain about it. Lucy loved the woman but any chance to save her ears from the Fairy Mage's grating tone when she complained, she would absolutely be taking. She also didn't let those opportunities pass.

Bickslow's easy deep voice sounded from where he had managed to escape the brunette's warpath with his arms crossed over his chest to look down at the little Celestial Mage, obviously impressed with her actions, "That should make her happy enough to keep her panties from wadding for day."

Smirking up at the blunette, her voice easy, "Oh I'm betting on it. Freed wanted to take a very sketchy, very narrow pass that would shave a day from the trip but would completely bypass the springs. Being the rational and intelligent woman I am, I put a stop to that plan and instead added a day for some much needed rest and relaxation. I may not be allowed to fuck you into oblivion like I want to, but I can sure as hell have a good time getting to know every inch of your body intimately," sliding in front him to trail her hand down the lean muscle of his chest, taking note of the desire behind his gorgeous eyes, "without interruption from anyone else."

Giving the minxy woman a devilish smile, his hand moved over her body to cup her ass and pull her up into his body as she let out a few breathy laughs while she balanced on her tiptoes, "I'm very looking forward to the part where you fuck me into oblivion but I'll settle on undoing you with my tongue."

"I am curious to see if your tongue lives up to all the hype," raising her eyebrow to bait the towering man, cheeky smile spread across her pouty lips.

Letting his tongue fall from his mouth to give her a very vivid show of what his tongue can do had her purring before she pulled him down into a flash of a passionate kiss. When she pulled back and crossed the camp to talk with her pinkette spirit, the Seith Mage just stood and watched, completely breathless and incredibly hard.

When the mages stopped for lunch, Lucy couldn't shake this odd pull towards the ledge of the steep path.

"All I'm saying is that you can't trust him. I know Makarov has dealt with him before and I know he wouldn't intentionally send you into anything dangerous, but Illium is half-insane on his best days. I've been watching him for the passed week and he's extremely paranoid, constantly surrounded by trained guards and he looks like a walking corpse. His daughter is nice though," Vander added casually as he spoke with Laxus. The rest of the team was very interested in hearing what the Shadowquip have found out about their mysterious mission as they focused on his easy voice.

Cristoff's voice held the tinge of playful disapproval, "Tell me you didn't, Vander. She's the Crown Princess of Joya."

With a sly smile as his only response to his brothers words, he continued, "The man's got a whole library devoted to magic and most of the books have to deal with some sort of Celestial or Sky magic. He had a whole dossier about little miss runaway princess. Who knew she had been a prospective Queen of Joya before you lot picked her up." Pausing to look around the camp before sitting straight up. He struggled to keep his voice even, "Where is Starshine?"

"What do you mean, she's right..." Cristoff paused when he noticed the little blonde was nowhere to be seen, his voice unruffled but they could see they way his shoulders tensed, "Okay, let's fan out and find her."

Bickslow had already gotten up the moment Vander had brought up the fact that the king of a foreign country had a file on her and he realized she was no longer leaned back beside him. He made his way over to the edge of the path before he saw a flash of gold from the corner of his eye. Muttering under his breath, "You've got to be fucking kidding me right now."

Lucy had managed to scale down the side of the mountain with the tiny hand holds that even he would have trouble keeping a hold of. Her hair was whipping around her from the winds at the high elevation they had reached and if she fell...well, he really didn't want to think about what would happen if she fell.

When Laxus saw Bickslow was standing stock still with his head craned down, he had a wave of dread pass through his body before standing next to his best friend and following his line of sight. When he spotted his sister's small frame reach for the inch wide ledge she was obviously hoping to have hold her up and that she was barefoot, he rubbed his hand down the side of his face, his voice full of angry exasperation, "You've got to be fucking kidding me..."

"Did you find...her...oh. Okay. I'll bite. What's she doing down there?" The easy way he crossed his arms over his leather-clad chest as his wine colored eyes watched her effortlessly scale the face of the mountain bristled the two older mages enough to shoot the Shadow Mage matching glares.

"If I knew what the fuck she was doing, I would tell you but since I don't, why climb down and ask her, dipshit." Laxus definitely wasn't in the mood for the youngest Pradesh's usual antics while Lucy was free-climbing a part of the deadliest mountain ranges in all of Earthland.

Holding his hands up, he slowly backed away from the blonde dragon before sliding up next to his brother, his voice lacking any worry, "Five thousand jewel says she jumps."

Shaking his head at his little brother, his voice incredulous, "Are you fucking serious right now? Why the hell would you say that-"

As if his little brother couldn't get anymore smug, they watched the tiny blonde push off the side of the mountain before a flash of gold rained down the mountain. It was only a a few moments before they heard a thud behind them and the turned to see Lucy, barefoot and tousled from the wind, grinning up at them from a crouch, her voice bright and cheery, "Look what I found!"

The tall blunette immediately pulled her up into his arms, her legs wrapping around his hips as he breathed into the crook of her neck, "Fucking Mavis, woman. How about a heads up before you decide to go for a free climb ten thousand feet up?"

Feeling the tension of his body, she started massaging the back of neck just below his hairline as she pressed sweet kisses to his temple, her voice light, "Right, sorry. I see now how that must have looked but," pulling back to show him a key with two wolf heads at its hilt, one silvery and one gold before her voice grew tight with excitement, "I found a key! Just sort of...jammed into the side of the mountain. I could hear it humming from the ledge and I knew that if I fell, I could summon a gate and start over. Probably should have said something first though..."

Laxus' deep baritone drawled from just over Bickslow's shoulder, "You don't say, Blondie."

When she heard Cristoff's easy laughter, she turned her head to meet his deep blue eyes, "Who did you pick up, sis? Hopefully someone worth your death-defying stunt."

Pressing an easy kiss to the center of Bickslow's tattoo, she unwrapped her legs from his body and stretched her toes down until she felt the warm stone and held her new key out. Before she could start her incantation to open the gate, two massive wolves appeared before her. The leaner of the two was taller and had fur the color of brilliant rust with subtle streaks of gold that made his swirling silver eyes stand out against the fiery coloring while his counterpart was slightly shorter but held a stockier build with fur black as night that moved like water as he stalked over to the blonde, the tips shining like silver as the sun hit him, and his eyes shining like liquid gold. The shorter of the two immediately nestled his head into her chest, his ears back and his head lowered before she heard a voice smooth as velvet but bright, Princess Lucy! Are you going to offer us a contract? We've heard so much about you and it would be an honor if you wanted us. She could tell the massive creature was trying to keep his tail-end from wagging and failing as she stumbled back from the twilight wolf's actions.

Her voice was bright and lilting as she scratched behind the pure silver of his right ear, "I would love to make a contract with you. Do you have a name or do I call you both Canes Venatici?"

A voice similar to the one she just heard filled her head. This one held a more mature tone and was slightly less deep, Miss Lucy, my name is Ato and this is my younger brother Saki. Together we make the Hunting Dogs constellation. It would be a great honor if you would offer a contract to keep us.

"Of course, Ato. Do you have any specifications I should know about? Particular days you'd like to be called out?"

No, you may call us whenever you have need. We have unmatched tracking abilities and we work seamlessly with each other. Our strength is heightened under the moon and we are nearly impossible to defeat under the light of a full moon.

"Did you two want to stay out for a bit? We were about to make the rest of the hike to the springs at the peak if you wanted to join us," her voice was as genuine as the smile on her face.

The black wolf started bounding around the blonde with his tail swishing back and forth, Oh yes, we've been stuck in the mountain for so long. I haven't felt the sun in my fur for far too long and I'd like to stay with you. You're sweet and lovely and I think you could even make Ato happy.

With a carefree laugh, she gave the younger wolf another scratch before holding her hand out to the taller red wolf. When he put his muzzle beneath her open palm, she brought her free hand to scratch at the base of his ear and he leaned into her hand so hard he stumbled over before she straightened and summoned her key ring to put their key with the rest of her family.

Evergreen and Bickslow had never seen Lucy make a contract before and they didn't know what to make of the small woman talking to two wolves whose heads stood taller than the blonde herself. The Seith Mage immediately started cackling when the bulkier of the two crouched down with it's tail swishing in the air as it tried to get Lucy to play.

Her voice was filled with the pride she always felt when she added a new member to her family as she turned to her team, "Team, I'd like to meet the spirits that make the Canes Venatici constellation. This is Ato and Saki, the Hunting Dogs. They aren't a silver key but they aren't one of the Jeweled keys either, so I'll have to ask them what set they are from."

Before she could introduce her team, the babies had started tumbling and chirping at the wolves to try to get them to play. Saki was excited to finally have some new playmates and started chasing the totems in circles while Muu sat between Ato's ears as he sat to lick the fur of his front paw.

"The babies seem to like them," the blunette's voice was easy as he draped an arm over the beaming blonde's shoulder. Looking down into her warm eyes, he gave her a wide smile as she looped her arm around his back and under his loose tank to run her hands over the lean muscles of his back.

Ever's tight voice was militant as she wound her way through the mages towards the path, "That was a long enough lunch break! Let's get going. Vander, I swear to Mavis herself, if you take my glasses again I will have no reservations about turning you to stone and putting you in Bickslow's garden for him to use as a gnome."

They let out a chorus of laughter before Lucy leaned her chin on his chest, her voice teasing, "How weird is it for you that she's making those kinds of threats to someone else for a change?"

"Give it an hour, I'm sure Medusa will find some reason to smack me with her fan," his voice playful as they started their march. Ato and Muu right next to the Celestial Slayer's left as Saki and the rest of the babies save for Papa, who was hovering close to Bickslow, continued their unfair game of tag.


	11. Step Eleven: Keep the Inn in One Piece

Step Eleven: Keep the Inn in One Piece

Both Ato and Saki went back just before the group hit where the path leveled off to reveal the quaint, well-maintained village of Misir'ru nestled neatly at the crest of the Drakago mountain range and the moment the dark stone buildings came to view, Evergreen almost fainted in relief. Freed was all that was keeping her upright as they walked into the sandstone inn. There was a chilled breeze cutting through the lobby with the windows opened in the thick stone walls to let the night air move the stagnant heat from the day that had long since left. A drastic difference from the ungodly heat the stone from the mountain absorbed and practically baked the mages on the way up the mountain, or at least it did when one of them strayed too far from Cristoff's very popular cooling magic.

Both blonde Dragon Slayers made their way to the front desk to see about getting five rooms for tonight and tomorrow while the rest of their party all sat at the seating area away from the quiet conversation. The Seith Mage's voice was easy as he watched the two blondes that very honestly looked like siblings aside from the sheer size difference with a smile on his face, "Do you think she'll ever stop pulling rabbits from hats?"

The Lunar Slayer eyed his brother with a matching smile on his lips, his deep voice light, "What do you mean, bro?"

Leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees as he ran his hands through his hair, a goofy, genuine, lop-sided smile on his face before he looked into his brother's deep blue, silver-flecked eyes, "She's over their speaking some dialect of Aqrui'bik I don't even know after fucking free-climbing the side of a mountain without a second thought to get a key for a pair of monster wolves, wolves bro, that spent the walk up here talking to her telepathically and playing chase with my babies. I've known you your whole life, Van, and I've never seen you take to someone like you've taken to her. Weirder yet, she actually likes being around you and what the fuck are the odds that Draco asks to go to her of all people. You know Draco, Cris. He doesn't treat anyone like he treats her, not even you," taking a breath before adding quietly, "and of literally all the human beings on Earthland, she mated to me after leaving for a week, one single week, and coming back a Dragon Slayer with a sex drive that rivals Vander's."

The youngest Pradesh gave a look of mock offense before teasing, "It's too bad I'll never know for myself. You'll have to let me know how Starshine does just so I know if I have to step up my game. I can't have her out-sexing the master."

Cristoff's easy laughter sounded before he gave his little brother's arm an easy punch, "Dude, I'm pretty sure you're out of her league now. You can't even keep up with me and dragonesses are worse. You've seen how Emzi gets and she's not mated. Five thousand jewel says Princess chews our big brother up and spits him out with a new appreciation for being a sub."

Deep wine eyes shined with mischief as he took the offered hand, "Make it ten thousand. I bet my boy Bixy here shows her the benefits of being a well-trained Boscan in the arts of pleasure. Dragon or not, every woman has a soft spot for man who knows how to use his tongue to its fullest potential."

"You're on. I can't wait to see both your faces when I'm right," was all the raven-haired Slayer said as he leaned back on the uncomfortable stone furniture that was a staple in Joyan culture.

Lucy's hand was on Bickslow's toned shoulder, pulling the cackling Seith Mage from his brothers, her voice low as her lips brushed over the shell of his ear, "I believe you and I have a second date to get to."

Faster than any one of them had seen the Seith Mage move, he scooped the giggling blonde up over his shoulder, her voice bright and bubbly through her laughter, "Mavis, Bix! You don't even know where our room is, you great big goon!"

He gave her ass a playful smack before answering easily, "I'm sure you'll let me know when to stop, Kitten."

Laxus was rubbing his hands down his face heavily when Cristoff looked up at the Lightning Dragon from the couch, "You can't still be upset about the two of them, Laxus. They're mates so it's pretty impossible for either of them to hurt the other now."

"It's not that the two of them are together."

Genuinely confused, his brow raised before asking, "Then what's got you grumpier than usual?"

"I've managed to save my ears from having to hear my little sister...with a man for years and there's no fucking way I'm getting out of that tonight." The blonde slumped into the seat that the Seith Mage had just abandoned before adjusting his hulking frame and mumbling under his breath, "Why the fuck would anyone make a couch out of stone?"

The Shadowquip offered, "You could always ask for a visit from the Sandman if you really wanted to sleep without hearing Bickslow pull orgasm after orgasm from our little Starshine."

"DON'T...don't start with me, Vander," cringing at the young Pradesh's crude words about his sister.

Shocking absolutely no one present, he pushed the Lightning Dragon further, his voice the epitome of innocence as his smile turned devilish, "At least you know little sis is in good hands. You know just what kind of things Bixy is capable of, being Boscan and all. Not to mention the fact that she'll never be bored. The two of them are incredibly flexible and open-minded-" before Laxus could release the charge that had been slowly building as he glared at the wine-eyed little instigator, Vander melded into the shadows and the blonde was left to his horrifying mental images.

When his sparking finally ceased, the Lunar Slayer clapped his shoulder with an easy smile on his face, "Come on, Laxus. I'll go tuck you into bed and make sure you have a silent sleep. I'll even give you nice dreams."

Lucy quickly stopped her mate when he carried her in front of their room for the next two nights and just as the lock was clicked into place, she had shoved him back into the door while very easily ripping the material of his shirt right down his chest before she was on him. Her lips were taking account of every inch of his tanned, toned body and he was just as ravenous as the little slayer. He was pulling her top from her body when she pulled back enough to grab the bottom of her sports bra and toss it aside, the cold air from the room immediately puckering her nipples as the gold of her ornate sun shields caught what little light was shining through the open windows. His hands immediately closed around them and gods, if it didn't feel like they were made to fit in his palms perfectly.

In a move that drew breathy laughs from the blunette, Lucy had wrapped her arms around his neck while her thighs gripped his hips so she could taste his intoxicating tongue as it tangled with hers. His hands were massaging the muscle of her ass before she pulled away, breathless as her eyes shined in the dark of the room, "Want...to take a...bath with me?"

His husky chuckles had her core aching as he started towards what he had assumed would be the bathroom, "Only if you'll wash my back."

Her words were muffled into the crook of his neck as she trailed hot, open-mouth kisses up to his pulse point, "You'd have a harder time trying to stop me, babe."

Reluctantly, she let him set her on the edge of the sink with a few more quick kisses before he turned his back to her to start filling up the tub with hot water. She had managed to stay on the sink for a total of thirty seconds before the defined muscles of his back flexed and twisted while he tested the temperature of the water flowing from the spigot forced a moan from her lips. He looked back at her with a fire in his deep red pools that beckoned her to him. She had to keep the steady mantra 'you cannot have sex with him, you cannot fuck him senseless, you cannot ride him into oblivion' as she crossed the tiled floor to snake her arms around his lithe body, her hands tracing the lines of his chest while she pressed a trail of kisses as far up his back as she could before she ran out of tip toes to stand on.

When he finally had the water hot enough, he put the stopper in and turned to sit on the edge of the tub, her curves settled neatly between his legs. Her fingers were running through the length of his hair as he bent to pull his boots from his feet, her voice light as he pressed aimless kisses across her hip, "Your hair is getting long, Bixy. The sides are getting a little more wild than usual."

He left a string of feathery kisses over her stomach before working to get the other boot off, his voice slightly deeper than usual, "I usually have to get it cut every month and I didn't think to get it done before we left. It grows insanely fast and requires an insane amount of upkeep."

"Why keep it then? I know for a fact you don't keep this hairstyle to lure the ladies in," her words weren't unkind while her nails scratched along his scalp making shivers run through his body.

Having finally freed himself from his boots, he wound his arms around her legs to work the muscles of her thighs through the thin material of her leggings as he looked up into her smiling chocolate eyes with an almost sheepish look on his face, "It's actually kind of a funny story actually."

Looking down at him expectantly, she waited a few beats before letting out an airy impatient, "Well? Are you going to tell it or are you just going to keep me in suspense?," before she let out a few light giggles.

Rolling his eyes, he let out a tired sigh before looking at the ceiling, "So I've always had to wear the visor to cover my Seith mark but when I was younger, I had to wear it until I could get my emotions under control as well. I feel something too strongly and my magic flairs, feeds off it. Well I wasn't always the most patient when it came to the damn thing and I had a particularly short fuse that day; my hair kept getting caught in the buckles so I shaved it off. I was young and I didn't want to admit it was out of frustration so I embraced the shit out of it. I guess I just got used to it after all these years."

Her lips were pressed into a line to keep from bursting out at the positively hilarious reasoning behind the Seith Mage's infamously ridiculous hairstyle. Lucy, of course, never really saw anything particularly wrong with it. He was still an incredibly attractive individual with or without the tri-hawk. Trying to keep from laughing outright, her voice was tight with mirth, "And you've never thought about just...letting it grow out since then?"

His voice was quiet as a blush spread across his cheeks and Lucy almost melted at the sight of it, "Of course I have. It's just...kind of a sensitive issue for me."

Reining her giggles in, she pressed a kiss to the center of his mark before pulling back and putting her hand on her chin as if in deep thought while her free hand played with the length on the top of his head, her voice thoughtful, "I don't know, I think I might miss the mohawk but I have always been curious about your hair. It's been the subject of many of my inner monologues while I watched you train."

Finally meeting her playful gaze, he let a smile curl his lips as he teased the beautiful blonde, "Oh yeah? What hairstyle do you envision me with, Starlight?"

Tilting her head adorably to the side in consideration, she mused, "Well for one, if you cut these little floofs here," playing with the tufts over his ears, "and just had an actual honest to Mavis mohawk, that would be a look a little less...it would just be less. Or you could always just trim the floofs until the sides grow in and then you could have a whole head of unruly hair, but like I said before, I think I would actually miss the mohawk. I'm pretty sure you could keep the floofs and I would still think you're sexy."

"You know what I think is sexy?"

She tried not to smile at the obvious flirtatious tone of his words as she rolled her eyes and offered casually, "A nice set of tits and a pair of killer legs?"

Running his tongue over the rosy peaks of her nipples, he took one in his mouth before pulling back and releasing it. The feel of his breath from his words over her bare chest sent rolling waves of arousal from her core, "You know me so well, Kitten. It's good thing you've got the nicest set of tits I've ever seen and a murderous pair of legs," before taking the other nipple in his mouth and giving it the same treatment.

Her words were caught in the moan that came from deep in her chest, "Gods, Bix..." When his hands ran down her curves to push the materials of her leggings and thong down her legs, his lips latched onto the juncture where her legs met her hip and she started her mantra over again. "You cannot have sex with him, you cannot fuck him senseless, you cannot ride him into oblivion, you cannot have sex with him," which was cut off by his deep, rumbling laughter letting her know that her inner mantra was now a very out loud mantra.

His words easy as her helped her out of her pants made a light blush run across the bridge of her nose, "You could, I think Laxus would kill us though...well, he'd maim me at the very least."

Letting out a deep sigh, she mused aloud as she straddled his lap and ran her nails over the hard muscle of his shoulder blades, "Not if he couldn't catch us. I've got a good hold on gate-hopping. I've never taken anyone with me through a gate though...so that would be a learning experience for everyone involved." Her eyes landed on the swell of his lips and she needed to pull his swollen bottom lip into her mouth to taste it again. Before he could get his words out, her lips were on his in a hungry kiss.

He could feel the pressure from her fangs as she bit his lip and sucked it into her mouth and when she started grinding her naked core over his barely restrained bulge, he realized he was going to have to be the one to keep them in check. If she wasn't testing him, the gods surely were as he leaned his forehead against hers to catch his breath and sanity, "How about we save that for after the bath. The water's just about ready, la mia luce stallare."

As he stood to take his shorts off, Lucy stood back with her hands clasped behind her back, very eager to watch the show unfold. He gave her a cheeky wink to match his handsome cheeky smile before dropping his drawers and standing upright, his arms crossed over his chest with a well-deserved confidence. She stood with a wide eyed, doe in the headlights look on her face as she took in the perfect specimen of man she had before her. Mavis help her, the man was the perfect blend of broad, bulk and tone all wrapped up in delicious deeply tanned skin and if she was being honest with herself, he was hung. Not enough that she was worried about him fitting or hurting her but he was big and by the cocky grin on his delectable lips, he was thoroughly enjoying her reaction. You cannot have sex with him. You cannot fuck him senseless. His voice was the easy drawl that drew her into him, "I can hear you cycling through your golden rules from here so why don't you get your gorgeous little body over here and I'll keep you plenty distracted," letting his tongue loll out as she let out involuntary growls and moved to stand in front of him, her hands raking over his flesh in hard motions that left angry red trails in their wake. He let out a low moan before caging her face in his hands, breathing over her lips, "That is such a fucking turn on," before running his hands down her body to wrap them underneath her thighs and lift her at the same time that he claimed her swollen lips. Hers were eager to be taken as they slanted over his with an almost feral cross between a moan and a rough growl.

Before she really even registered anything beyond the way his lips melded over hers as his tongue, his very talented tongue, circled and teased her own, he was bracing her ass with one arm easily as he lowered them into the steaming depths, forcing a whole other kind of moan from her body, her voice laced with relief, "I so miss being able to take baths. Sweet, glorious, hot baths."

Her hair was already starting to cling to her body from the steam alone as he ran his fingers through her long ropes of golden hair, his deep silky voice distracted as the tip of his nose trailed over her pulse, making her heart beat faster and her chest to start heaving, "It's been years since I've taken a bath."

Her fingers had already tangled into the hair at the back of his neck as her neck craned back, her voice breathless and needy, "That's such...a shame." Her hips were grinding over his length and with every pass, the tension in her core was building and she was having trouble controlling her dragon as she felt the familiar sensation of her scales bristling over her shoulders, up her neck and down her back.

His voice was husky as he lifted her on the edge of the tub in a rough motion that had her head spinning and she had to bite back the need to be in control, her thighs on either side of his shoulders as he drank in the sight of her. The deep blue glistening scaled patches decorating her body, the intermittent scales of pure shining gold flecked randomly throughout before looking into her bright golden eyes that held deep sapphire flecks and all but took his breath away. His hands were ghosting just over the dips of her hips as he stared into her mesmerizing pools, "Nei tuoi occhi c'e il cielo, la mia luce stallare." His whispered words of adoration were the spark that set her coil on fire as he nibbled over her collarbone.

Her voice was tight with her barely restrained need as she heaved out, "I have no idea what you just said but I need you to put that deliciously sexy mouth of yours on my clit before I lose control."

His throaty chuckle pulled a warning growl from deep within her chest as he took his time moving down her body, his words caressing the smooth skin of her body as he went, "Heaven is in your eyes, my starlight and I meant every word of it." Before she could let out the dreamy sigh at his absolutely perfect words, his tongue was running up her slit as he settled her thighs over his shoulders and all mental capacities stalled. The deft length of him teased her sex relentlessly as if he wanted to test every inch of her before finally, finally delving into her depths and even that was like another spark straight through her core as her hand gripped the soft silk of his hair and pressed him further into her body brazenly. He smiled against her folds at her rough handling and moved his hands from where they had been holding her hips to spread her wider for him, his breath running over her glistening folds forcing a sound that crossed a needy moan with that unhinging growl she does to fall from her lips.

When his thumb teased over her sensitive bundle, just barely a feather light touch, that easy touch made her eyes shut and stars shoot across the backs of her eyelids, "Holy gods, Bix...please..."

The way her chest heaved and her breath hitched under his careful ministrations had him wanting more from the slice of heaven he would have for the rest of his life. Pulling his other hand from around her thigh, he pulled his mouth away from her core to blow across the sensitive bud before plunging two of his long fingers into her heat and latching his lips around her clit and she screamed his name at the top of her lungs. She had never had an orgasm hit her with the force that was send lightning waves of pleasure throughout her body all the way to the ends of her toes. It made her thighs clench around his head as her walls tightened and convulsed around his fingers still drawing the overwhelming sensation out for as long as he possibly could. Just before he drove her over the cusp of being too much, he relented and pulled his fingers from her depths to lap at her in languid, unhurried motions sending tremors through her muscles.

He had to pull her back into the water as her Dragon Force faded, her back pressed into his chest as she practically melted over him. He moved her hair out of his way to press kisses over the skin of her neck pulling sweet, rumbling purrs from her before she turned to litter his face with her own kisses. Her lips pressed over the defined line of his jaw, over the shell of his ear before pulling the pierced lobe of his ear into her mouth and sucking gently. A teasing, playful bite sent a wave of heat through his body as a deep, throaty moan fell from his lips.

"Easy, Kitten," his voice was easy and lilting as his lips split in a brilliant smile, "One of us has to make sure this bath is productive and I'm getting the very distinct impression like it's going to be me."

Looking up at him from beneath her thick lashes as she turned her body completely around in the water and pressed her chin into his chest, her arms looping around his ribs. Her voice was still raspy, "I can be good," pausing to repeat more to herself than the chuckling Boscan running his fingers through his hair, "I have to be good."

The blunette made a motion for the blonde to turn around as he suds up a wash cloth to run over the creamy skin of her back, his voice its usual easy drawl as he went, "So how does a woman know the mountain dialect of the Drakago Mountains but not Minstrellan?"

She let out a little sigh of contentment at his actions before answering, "Well, before I ran away, my father had set up a potential match for me with one of the members of the Joyan Royal Court so I pretty much learned everything there is to know about Joya including the languages," clearing her throat, she continued, "'ana 'aydaan bitalaqat fi Midish walakun 'ana 'uhibu dayimaan Mynistarlan." When he stayed silent behind her, she let out a few chuckles before translating, "I'm also fluent in Midish but I've always loved Minstrellan. The language of Midi is beautiful and fluid like Minstrellan but I was taught Germaic and Lithussian because they were the most common business languages. Pretty much Aqrui'bik was a bonus and it's not exactly the language of love."

"Oh, is that all? Those are literally some of the most complicated languages to understand. If it wouldn't be for the fact that your skin is the color of milk, I would have thought it was your first language." His voice was teasing and bright before asking, genuinely confused, "You mean you didn't know who your...potential husband was?"

"My maids and tutors didn't know so I didn't know. My father rarely spoke with me after Mama died and he was the one who set all my matches up. It's pretty common in arranged marriages which is kind of why I ran. How could I be happy knowing my life was at the mercy of someone else's plan?" Her whole life had been sculpted to fit someone else's plan just so she could be given away like a prize to be won and put on a shelf, only to be pulled down when her husband deemed necessary and it made her more sad than angry anymore that there were still people stuck in that life. When Bickslow pulled his hand away from her skin, she turned her around to lounge across from the broad shoulders of her incredibly attractive mate with his hair still mussed from their earlier activities, bright energetic eyes the color of wine, his mouth set in a easy smile, one side just a hair higher than the other in a subtly sexy grin. She watched totally captured by the way his wet fingers ran through the sides of hair then the top in a completely innocent gesture but the way the taut muscles pulled along his frame as he moved and the way despite the tub being larger than most, his height making it seem tiny, he still looked at ease and happy. The pull on her heart felt like a physical tug as her dragon purred and lulled, trying to get her to close the gap in a far less ferocious way than she was used to. She was already halfway back into his lap, his eyes on hers with a devilish glint in their swirling red pools when she blinked up at him with a dumbfounded look on her face. Which of course lead to the Seith Mage letting out a howl of a cackle which lead to Lucy's sparkling chocolate orbs to narrow and send a wave of water to his face. Whether she meant to or not, the little blonde managed to displace an alarming amount of water, washing out the ledge of the decorations, soaps and shampoos while soaking the rugs and most of the floor.

Bickslow wiped the droplets of water off his face and back into his hair to slick it back while giving her the most shiver-inducing, wolfish smile, her voice was an attempt at soothing but it came out more pleading through her laughter as she backed away and tried to make her way out of the tub, "Would you look at that, Bixy? All bathed and ready to go. Wasn't this a great bath, you know? I definitely thought-Bix!"

He waited until she was standing at the edge of the tub before he lunged and hefted her back over his shoulder. The strands of her long hair stuck to his skin as she kissed along the muscles of his back through her own laughter. His voice was bright and playful, "Now, now, Kitten, I don't think you know just the war you've started."

She gave a smirk before roving her hands down his back to grip the muscle of the most perfect ass and testing, her voice a mirror of his own, "What kind of war have I found myself in then, darling?" Her nails raked up his back in a way that sent chills down his back and made his cock twitch.

"The kind that leave you totally ravaged and defenseless," his words were surprisingly gruff for the blunette but gods, if it didn't just make her stomach tense and her thighs clench. A breathy chuckle sounded from her captor as he easily slid her body down his chest so her legs were wrapped around his waist and she was nose to nose with the deviously grinning man.

She couldn't help but sound breathless as her eyes searched his and found the same fire for life she always saw when she looked in his eyes, "That doesn't sound so bad, but you'd have to slay a dragon first." She peaked over her shoulder and waited until the bed was right below her and, interrupting the words about to fall from her mate's perfect lips, released her hold on his neck and bent backwards, barely kicking off his abs before holding the handstand for just a moment and landing on her stomach in the center of the bed.

Bickslow had been with plenty of flexible women, even acrobats like himself, and none of them had ever...done that. It was effortless and graceful and his blood was boiling. His body was warm, too warm and the creamy milk of her skin seemed like the perfect relief. He only got a knee on the edge of the bed before her hand was on the inside of his thigh and her breath was ghosting over the sensitive flesh of the tip of his member. The impossible curve of her back that lead to more impossible curves of her hips, her ass and the lusty haziness present in her faintly glowing golden orbs had his breath genuinely caught before he uttered words he never though he would ever utter in his life, his voice soft and sincere, "You don't have to...do..."

Lucy couldn't help but moan around his length at his sudden silence which pulled her name up from his chest in a moan so sinfully sexy, she could feel her bodies reaction to it in a primal wave of arousal. One of her hands trailed up the inside of his tanned thigh to cup his balls while her tongue traced over the velvety skin of his cock. She wanted to savor the way he tasted and the way his body responded to every little flick of her tongue or caress of her fingers. It wasn't long until her right hand griped his hip and one of his hands trailed down her back to give her ass a smack which pulled a low throaty moan from the woman as her nails dug into the flesh of his sides leaving marks in their wake.

The vixen inside her was thrilled at the rough treatment but the dragon was livid. In an effort to save the poor man's tender bits, she pulled back to her knees and tried to get the familiar flashing of scales to stop. She knew she would get more aggressive but complete refusal to submit was not going to happen. Her voice was tight as she tried to control her breathing, "I think this will go easier if lay down, Bickslow."

The blunette was watching her with a wide-eyed expression as she tried to calm down, her eyes shut with the smallest wrinkle between her brows. He was panicking internally. Should he not have gotten so handsy? Being the relatively straight forward man he was, he easily moved to kneel in front of her, his voice questioning as the palm of his hand ran up and down her thigh in soothing motions, "Lucy? What's wrong? I probably should have asked how high your freak flag waves before testing the waters without a safe word. Rookie mistake-"

"Bickslow, it's not that," his worry melted away when he heard her low laughter, her eyes were still honeyed over but the corners were wrinkled with smiles, "my dragon doesn't know that this isn't Thundercats are go-time so I am having difficulties keeping myself from tackling and mounting. You are wonderful and sexy and I am bad at not wanting to have sex with you." The sound of his rich laughter made her forget about the flash of her Dragon Force.

The feel of the silky skin over her jaw and cheek under the tips of his fingers was enough enticement for him to pull her into a sweet kiss. Her fingers wound around the back of his neck as she slanted her lips over his to deepen it as he laid her back into the soft cotton of their bed.

When Bickslow pulled back, he flipped their position so she would be resting on his chest, her dark brown eyes staying on his as he teased while playing with her hair, "Did you just say Thundercats are go-time?"

Her smile grew wide and proud, "I absolutely did."

She watched as eh adjusted his pillow to get himself comfortable, his voice easy as he went, "Isn't that like a really obscure series about cat-people?"

Her eyes narrowed playfully as he finally got settled with his left hand behind his head and his right rubbing the muscles of her shoulder, her voice was half a moan from his absent actions, "It's an amazing piece of animation from the gods themselves and I happily own the series. We can watch it when we get back." Her eyes widened comically, freezing Bickslow as he waited to see what the tiny spitfire was going to do now. "Where are the babies?"

He concentrated on his souls for just a second before easily offering the Celestial Mage, "They appear to be spending the night with Laxus. Did you want them in here?"

Without a second thought, she gave him a nod of her head and got up from her very comfortable position to wait at the door to let the babies in, her voice faraway as she mused out loud, "I don't think he'll fit in my bed. He definitely won't fit in my tub."

The Seith Mage was just enjoying the view of all her naked glory as he smirked and asked the daydreaming slayer, "Who, Starlight?"

"You," her response was easy as she gave him a droll look that said 'of course', "I don't think you and my apartment are compatible."

He gave a nod before steeling his nerves and trying to sound casual, "But you and my house are plenty compatible." Obviously becoming mated to Lucy would mean that they would live together eventually and he was more than excited to experience that but that didn't stop the involuntary rush of fear at the thought of living with someone in his home. He wanted her there and knew it was just residual fear of commitment impulses he had left that made his hands clammy. Or maybe it was the fear of her rejection of the carefully built safe space he crafted for himself. Both were superfluous considering they were fated to complete the other.

Her lips split into a wide toothy smile that she tried to smother by biting her lips before bouncing back over to the side of the bed to lean across and pull him into a deep kiss full of all the emotion she had at his simple words. She pulled away just enough to let her lips ghost over his, "Whatever it means to you...yes, Bix." She heard the faint chittering from the babies and turned to let them in, leaving the completely struck man to his thoughts. Gods, did he have thoughts about what just happened.

When she cracked the door open, still naked from their bath, the babies came tumbling and rolling into the room with a whirlwind of noises, a few of the souls chattering at once. The Celestial Slayer tried to answer their questions as best she could before Muu nuzzled into her neck. "Sweet babies, I've missed you too. You don't say? Why was Cristoff in Laxus' room- Oh, it was a sleep thing. Why did he need to be put to- Oh," her cheeks deepened to a rusty red, "well, I guess that would make sense. Bickslow, we've traumatized the Thunder God."

At the mention of his name, she suddenly came crashing back into his focus with his babies all wiggling and talking around her and the words 'Thunder God' registered, his voice tentative as he leaned against the headboard, "Laxus? Was it the babies? I already told them I was done defending them when they did something to piss him off."

She gave her head a shake as she crawled her way over to him, "We were the problem this time. As in you and I, me and you, us together."

His brows furrowed in confusion at her words before the realization hit him. He heard them. In Bickslow's mind, Laxus hearing the two of them was hilarious and served the pesky cockblock right but he knew Lucy would more than likely be mortified about.

With a roll of her eyes, she watched him wipe the tears from the corner of his eyes with his knuckle from his cackling as she lifted the blankets to settle in next to him. Her voice was a grumble as she crossed her arms over her chest the moment the pillow was comfortable under her neck, "It's fucking hilarious right? It should be. I seriously have retinal damage from the sight of him and the brunette. He had his socks on. How weird is that? Why did he have socks on in the first place? We were on a cruise. Socks aren't necessary unless you want to be a shoobie tourist."

"Why were you so focused on his feet?" A whole new wave of cackling ensued much to the completely horizontal and tucked in blonde.

She gave a tired huff before speaking evenly, "I certainly wasn't going to look anywhere higher after what I saw. She was too pretty to be with a guy who wears socks on a cruise, no matter how thick his arms are."

He looked down at the straight line of her mouth, her face totally devoid of emotion save exasperation and couldn't help loose a few stray laughs.

After a few minutes of the Seith Mage's continued poking, he finally pulled the blankets over his body, his hands exploring the planes of her body while she turned and did the same. All the while talking more about his childhood in Bosco, her mother and Aquarius, jobs with Team Natsu and jobs with the Raijinshu and Laxus. The babies tucked themselves in around the pair to listen to their voices and watch their souls dance and tangle with each other until they fell asleep.


	12. Step Twelve: Give a Round of Reassurances

Step Twelve: Give a Round of Reassurances 

When Laxus woke the next morning for what seemed like the hundredth time since he laid down, he didn’t know whether he wanted to shoot out of his bed like a bat out of hell into one of two rooms to knock someone around or just stay in bed. He could rush to ruin his little sister’s half-assed morning after with his best friend on account of his bleeding ears from a lack of soundpods for their evening romp in the tub. He had given them to Lucy who gave them to Virgo who stayed in the Spirit World despite Cris trying to convince his own spirit Rastaban, a gift from Draco himself when he was a young boy, to go in and get them so the fellow Dragon Slayer would have some comfort but the stoic spirit refused. Which brought him to his next potential victim, the Lunar Slayer himself. That weaseling Boscan put him to sleep just fine but the dreams he gave him not only had him waking in cold sweats every two hours, but also jumping in the shower to try and ease the ache low in his gut. He spent most days forcefully repressing the memories of getting caught in Cristoff’s full moon sexcapades in his time away from the guild. The night was a little too intense for Laxus and even now, he doesn’t remember whole chunks of the hours stuck in Vander’s penthouse. Even now, as he lay back in bed, his usually subdued dragon was twisting inside, trying to get him to remember.

That wasn’t going to happen on the hulking blonde’s time so he would just stay in this moderately comfortable bed in this mediocre inn on the top of a mountain until something or someone-

Lucy’s voice was soft through the wood of his door and he could hear her heartbeat quicken the longer she stood outside. “Uhm, Laxus? I, uh, know you’re awake and I’m honestly not sure if it’s rude that I know that but can I come in? Or you can come out I guess but it’s kind of chilly out here so I really don’t think you want to come out into the hall...”

He waited until the end of her rambling before pulling the blankets from his frame and crossing the cool stone to open the door. He gave her sleep-tousled, t-shirt clad body a thorough once over. Fairy Tail sent their Light away as a summoner and she’ll return a slayer. The shit he was going to catch from her team was already giving him a headache. Team. Fairy Tail. When was the last time either of them checked in?

Lucy’s head tilted curiously as she watched her brother’s face contort into a string of emotions that seemed improbable for the stoic brute, her eyes narrowing in concern as she stepped closer with her hands on her hips to inspect him further. Also, she really wanted out of the hallway. The Celestial Slayer wasn’t kidding when she said it was cold and Bickslow’s shirt was doing little to keep her legs warm. “Bro. Brother. Dude, what is your problem right now? Move back so I can come in and steal your blankets.” The little shooing motion seemed to get him moving out of her way successfully enough.

She had only managed to make her way halfway to her destination before she heard the Lightning Mage mutter from where he stayed leaned against the door, “When did you talk to Gramps last?”

“Stars, it’s been...oh stars.” Realizing their mistake, she huffed out, “That is a problem.” She hadn’t talked to anyone from the guild since the cruise ship.

Lucy could hear the edge to his voice that most wouldn’t be able to discern. He was shaken by something and she had a growing suspicion it was not from a lack of communication with the guild. “You think it’s still too early? I really would like to get this out of the way. Just rip it off like a bandaid. Superglued to my ass.”

She let out a scoff before sitting on the edge of his bed, her voice teasing and light to try an ease the mood, “Are you referring to our Guildmaster and grandfather or the guild as a whole that you’ll be in charge of soon as a bandaid superglued to your ass in need of removal? Because neither seem appropriate for a future Guildmaster…”

Unfazed by her words, he pulled out the comms lacrima from his coat and pushed magic into it. It pulsed steadily as the hulking blond, dressed in only a pair of briefs, made his way to fill the spot next to his little sister on the edge of his mussed bed, his voice bored as he waited and hoped for someone who wasn’t Makarov or Mira to answer, “You know, I’ll still need help with all the paper bullshit when I become Master.”

She absently checked her nails as she poked fun at him, “Will I get a fancy title or will I still be an unpaid laborer for you to use and abuse because I’ll be honest with you, I could totally get behind being the Hand of the Master. I could seriously get behind that title. Maybe Lieutenant-Master Lucy Heartfilia? At your service, Master Laxus.”

A frantic feminine voice cut through their playful banter, “WE WERE SO WORRIED ABOUT YOU! WHY HAVEN’T YOU BEEN CHECKING IN WITH ME? We were about to send out Team Natsu to find you-”

Lucy cringed at the tone and volume of her silverette guildmate while Laxus sat completely desensitized to the demon barmaid’s grating tendencies. “Mira, please. Please stop yelling. We didn’t-”

“LUCE?! IS THAT LUCE? I KNOW IT IS-” They could hear the two mages scuffling in the background. “NO, I WILL NOT CALM DOWN- GIVE ME THE-” Suddenly, the grinning face of one Natsu Dragneel came fully into view and Lucy about burst into happy tears as he continued his haughty rampage at the softly giggling silver-haired beauty, “Yeesh, Mira, she’s my partner and I haven’t even seen her in forever. Wait your turn and quit hogging her.”

Laxus had quickly handed the little blonde slayer the comms the moment his pink hair flashed into view and laid back with his hands behind his head, his deep baritone a grumble under his breath, “It had to be the demon and ash for brains. Not once can one of the normal members answer the damn lacrima.”

She couldn’t help but shake her head and laugh at his annoyance with something he was going to have to deal with for the rest of his life before trying to catch her best friends attention, “Natsu...Natsu...I have very big news for you and you’re going to miss it…”

At her playful sing song tone, his onyx eyes snapped to meet hers and moved his face entirely too close to the lacrima, his voice bright, “Wow, you’ve really bulked up! I bet you could beat up Metal Breath with those muscles. Wait, why do you have fangs?” His face turned deadly serious as his voice dropped low, “I knew the legends were true. I knew they would take you.”

Lucy looked up to the ceiling in an effort to breathe before calmly asking him to explain his lunacy, “What are you talking about, and use details please. Many details.”

The pinkette let out a tight sigh before launching into a surprisingly well-informed lecture on the nomadic Vampiric Clans of the Joyan mountains. She just blinked at the Fire Mage’s impassioned speech even as Laxus sat up from his horizontal position with an utterly bemused look on his face. All they could do was stare at their nakama in a quiet kind of awe. He had just finished explaining how now that Lucy craved the sweet delicious blood of her enemies, they would have to go on more jobs together with a bouncy excitement when there was a beat of silence over the conversation to give Lucy just enough time to think through the words she had just taken in.

The Celestial Mage was torn between turning to see just what the heck kind of a once in a lifetime face Laxus was currently sporting and actually reaching through the comm and shaking some sense into her pink-haired best friend. Vampires? Really?

Laxus was the first to get over the shock and it was thankfully before Natsu could go off on anymore tangents on the superstitions and legends of Joya. The older mages voice was even and measured but there were undertones of an emotion Lucy couldn’t quite catch and Natsu was oblivious to, “While that was really really fucking informative, too informative, Blondie isn’t a vampire.”

Natsu scoffed, clearly unimpressed. “If she’s not a vampire then why does she have fangs?” The retort was angry and innocent. Lucy was just trying to keep a straight face and failing horribly through the exchange between the two dragons.

With a surprising amount of patience, Laxus dulled on, “Are you a vampire?”

His answer was given without hesitation. “No.”

The older mage continued to prod him towards the right conclusion, “Am I a vampire?”

Natsu gave him a skeptical look, one brow raised as if contemplating the probability that both Lucy and Laxus were blood-sucking night dwellers before the Lightning Slayer cut his thoughts off with a roll of his steel blue eyes for a new angle, “Is Gajeel a vampire?”

“No.”

“Is Wendy?”

“No.”

“Sting or Rogue? Cobra?”

Not understanding what this had to do with anything, he offered his nest answer hesitantly, “No…”

Two of the three mages present for this conversation knew where it was going, but Natsu was still a little slow to the draw as Lucy prodded further, “You all have fangs too…”

“Yeah, but we’re Dragon Slayers. We are supposed to have fangs. You aren’t supposed to have fangs.”

She was rubbing her forehead with her free hand as she leaned forward on her knees. “For the love of Mavis, I’m trying to tell you I’m-”

“-a vampire. Totally a vampire.” Vander’s lithe body was practically draped over Lucy’s body as he rested his chin on her shoulder with a cheshire grin.

Not willing to put the effort into reining the pesky Shadowquip in this early in the morning, Laxus got up to get ready for the day. Mira had seen he was alive and breathing and that was a good enough check in for him.

Her best friend had gotten immediately standoffish the moment the strange raven-haired newcomer popped in on top of his partner from dark wispy things that did not sit well with the Fire Dragon. “Who are you?” 

Unable to control himself, the tricksy Shadow Mage continued to feed Natsu’s delusions. “I’m Starshine’s blood bitch. She’s such a good mistress.” He had tried to start rubbing over her arms but Lucy shot forward off the bed and through a gate to escape being caught in the middle of the two before falling in a heap on top of Bickslow’s unsuspecting sleeping form.

The amount of screaming coming from both the blunette beneath her and the pinkette on the other side of the comm she had somehow managed to keep a hold of throughout the whole scene was enough to cause alarm in the those within earshot. 

By the time it ended, Lucy was half caught in the sheets and half off the bed clutching the lacrima to her chest as her mate tried desperately to pull the tangled sheets from her to cover his chest from the intruder just as Cristoff burst into their room. 

Before anyone could say anything else, Lucy’s bright voice all but heaved out, “We are fine! Everyone is okay. I learned Bickslow is a little girl when it comes to getting scared though so that’s a bonus.”

The blunette’s tone was teasing but out of breath, “I’d like to see how gracefully you wake up when a human body comes crashing into you from above as the first experience you have bright and early in the morning.”

She deadpanned from her half upside down state, “Your first instinct was to scream and cover your chest. Like a housewife from forty years ago. All you need are those curlers in your hair.”

Confusing both Pradesh boys, another male voice, muffled but too energetic to miss, sounded from where the Celestial Slayer’s torso disappeared over the edge of the bed, “Luce handles things way better. At least she has the sense to kick first and ask questions later like a real mage.”

The little blonde’s voice was confident as her hands came up as if in exasperation, revealing the lacrima in her grasp, “See? You’re going to have to get ready for some pretty regular b and e’s and that girly flailing won’t do a damn thing.”

Recognizing Natsu’s voice, Bickslow finally stretched his back before scratching his stomach absently, already over the dramatics, “Mornin’ Flameo. How goes the destructive tendencies?”

Cristoff was still standing in the doorway watching the exchange almost enraptured by the way it felt like home when he realized Lucy wasn’t going to get up on her own and Bickslow wasn’t moving to help her so with a laugh of a sigh, he crossed the room to set his newest smaller sister upright.

Actually very proud of himself, the Fire Slayer’s chest puffed a little when he came back into view in front of them, “Happy and I just came back from a job up north melting the ice blocking the trains from leaving.”

Squished between the thick muscles of the Lunar Slayer and Bickslow’s broad frame on their bed, Lucy looked hilariously tiny in comparison as she frowned and asked, genuinely confused, “Didn’t Lis go with you?”

“Why would Lis come?” Also genuinely confused.

“Because you guys just went on that long job together…?”

Natsu just continued to stare at her. 

She narrowed her eyes before prying every detail of their mission from her dolt of a best friend. By the way he talked about it, he and Happy basically treated Lis as one of the guys and if Natsu is to be believed, they all agreed they didn’t work very well together. Something told Lucy that the youngest Strauss finally realized that the guild’s Fire Dragon wasn’t even the slightest bit interested in romantics. She had thought maybe he just needed a push in the right direction but the poor guy was a hopeless case. He told her he had plenty in his life already and didn’t need a woman. When they had broached the subject late one night in her little pink bedroom, he told her that he had his nakama and Happy and her. His dragon would let him know when he met his mate and until then, he wanted become the strongest mage he can be. She should have listened to him then and saved herself many scheming nights with Mira. “Ugh, I cannot wait for the day when you meet your mate. You will have absolutely no idea what to do with them.”

When the two finally hung up, the sun had risen and Lucy facepalmed when she remembered that not only did she fail to tell him she was a Dragon Slayer and he would probably tell everyone she was a creature of the night but she didn’t talk to Levy or Erza about checking in on her apartment. She also didn’t introduce Cristoff or Vander. 

The Lunar Slayer was making his way back to his room when an arm shot out to grab his bicep and pulled him into a different room completely. His usually carefree drawl was tight with confusion, “Laxus? Van? What are you two doing?”

His younger brother’s voice was entirely too serious for his liking and the subject matter only made his shoulders tense with tight apprehension. “I just got done talking to Dad. It seems the King of Joya has requested the presence of the prominent members of the White Sea. Specifically, one Lunar Dragon Slayer. He and Kaleb said they would let us know what we are going to do but for now, I have to go back. I won’t let Kaleb or Farron come here without me with them.”

The raven haired slayer gave a nod of his head in agreement, his fingers running through the long strands as his silky voice filled with the affection and concern that came naturally from the teddy bear of man, “Let them know to be careful and you be careful. Seriously Van, this whole mission has been off from the beginning and now they are bringing another foreign guild into it. Asking for me by name like he asked for Lucy. We are missing too much information to mishandle this.”

With a cocky smirk that somehow made Cristoff’s worries ease just enough to even his heartrate out, the Shadow Mage left the two slayers to go say goodbye to his favorite little spitfire before heading back to Bosco to escort more of his family to the god forsaken country.

xXxXxXxXxXx

When their band of mages finally all got up and around with breakfasts in their bellies and mission updates all out of the way, Ever and Lucy linked arms and made their way to the springs practically vibrating with excitement.

The two stood at the edge of one of the larger pools of steaming water, clutching their towels to their chests in ways that only pushed their chests higher. Even at the late morning hour, these springs seemed to be popular with men and women alike. Both of which were relaxing away in the coed steam of this particular pool. The pair of Fairy Tail ladies went beet red when a man in his seventies got up out of the water and sauntered right by beside them, nude as the day he was born.

Her Seith Mage’s familiar cackle sounded behind them before he gave a quick, “excuse me ladies,” and a wink to his gaping, flushed woman before shamelessly dropping his towel to sink into the soothing waters, completely at ease with the open nature of the public spring thanks to his Boscan upbringing.

Just as Ever was about to turn to tell Lucy that it wasn’t too late to get one of the smaller, private pools, Cristoff’s very built, very attractive naked body walked by and had the Fairy Mage choking on her own spit before averting her eyes in any direction except that one. The Lunar Slayer was whistling under his breath as he passed them, his voice light and carefree, “Are you going to get in or just stare at the water all day?”

It took both Laxus and Freed managing to get their completely naked butts into the water without a problem for the blonde, looking to her brunette girlfriend with a determined glint in her eye, to gather the gumption to get in. With a nod to confirm their silent pact, they dropped their towels and practically dove into the waiting waters at the same time. 

When their groups distinct male laughter died down, both Ever and Lucy had settled next to each other a good bit away from anyone else. No one paid any mind to the lack of clothes but the boisterous nature of the Pradesh boys seemed attention catching enough to pull the focus of the entire population of the pool and staff and even Freed, with his impeccable high knot of hair and bangs hanging loose in front of his eye, had started to put runes in place for some sort of bizarre game of Marco-Polo that included trying to pull people under the water as a sort of stealth attack. Lucy couldn’t keep up with their excited testosterone chatter and her Fairy Mage partner couldn’t have cared less so they relaxed and sat back to take in the most amazing soak in the most rejuvenating waters after weeks of walking.

It wasn’t until twenty minutes later when it got too quiet, too fast that the women lifted their heads and opened one eye each to scan the water for a headcount of their brood of extremely handsome mages. The Celestial Slayer easily identified the raven head of hair and shimmering blue eyes of one Pradesh. Unfortunately for her, it was the wrong Pradesh to have been looking for as a set of lithe fingers wrapped around her ankle and tugged her below the steaming surface.

“Bix!-” was all she managed before the hot water engulfed her.

In an unfortunate underwater exchange, one of Lucy’s heels connected with the blunette’s face at the same moment Evergreen’s elbow hit the bone of her eye socket. Both Lucy and Bickslow came up sputtering and bleeding and the Fairy Mage came up screeching insults and expletives freely.

Needless to say, they were promptly asked to leave the springs and never come back.

By the time they had gotten dressed and mosied back out into the midday heat after Cristoff healed his brother’s very broken nose and Nix healed the swelling and bruising of her eye, they were starving and the ladies were heartbroken about being banned from the sweet steaming waters. 

Both the females hadn’t said a word since leaving the scene of the incident. Both with straight lines for mouths and their arms crossed over their chests.

With a charming smile, Bickslow and his babies saddled up next to their favorite blonde. She paid him zero mind as she scooped each of the babies up to cradle them in her arms and went back to her measured gait towards the source of the delicious smelling food tickling her senses.

Or at least she would have if Muu and the others hadn’t become an immovable wall in front of her, refusing to let her budge unless she really tried. She eyed the Seith Mage sideways as the rest of their team continued on without them.

The towering blunette had yet to put his visor on while they were here so the hypnotizing pools of deep red caught her attention instantly. The wind had picked up since their walk to the spring and it seemed to catch the thick tufts of his hair in a way that forced his intoxicating scent into her headspace. The urge to strip and mount him was significantly less in the daylight but the time of day had no effect at all on her deep seeded pull to be closer to the handsome Boscan. The stubborn woman wasn’t even that upset about being banned from the hot springs. Maybe it was just good old fashioned female camaraderie that kept her irritated but whatever it was, it was no match for her mates downright criminal lopsided grin. 

In a smooth motion that held a careful affection, Bickslow had ran his thumb over her cheekbone. Her senses immediately focused on the timbre of his voice as he teased, “I would like to say sorry for setting up the string of events that got your eye elbowed.”

The handsome blunette thought he was in the clear for sure when a smile started pulling at his little mate’s lips but it quickly turned impish as her fingers traced over his collarbone in a way that had him flashing back to their first date before she was drawling deviously, “Aaand?”

Narrowing his eyes in slight confusion, he guessed blindly all the while distracted completely by the way she undid him with the touch of her fingertip, “And...for getting us kicked out of the springs…?”

She held his gaze for a few moments longer before giving a shrug and pulling him down into a playful series of kisses spanning over the soft skin of his bottom lip. 

Bickslow certainly wasn’t going to complain about the ease of which he just got off the hook as he caught her lip between his teeth and wrapped his hands around her narrowed waist. He seemed almost taken aback when she leaned back to press a light kiss to his Seith mark before lacing their fingers together to catch up to Laxus and the rest of their team for lunch.

The couple slid around the stone booth so once again Lucy was sandwiched between the towering frames of Bickslow and Cristoff as the Lunar Slayer finished his call with Kaleb. Without thought or hesitation, her cheek moved to rub the smooth fabric of his t-shirt stretched over his bulging arms in an attempt to soothe her brother. The soft almost purrs coming from her throat forced both her kin to unconsciously lean towards her and start the low rumblings in their own chests. “What did he have to say?”

“The next town we should be coming across is E’merr. Kaleb and Vander will be waiting for us there. They are hoping we can take one of their Waldrapps all the way to the capital.”

Freed’s silky voice held a kind of wonder that pulled chuckles from the Seith to her right, “I’ve heard such fascinating tales about the Waldrapps of Joya. Specially trained massive birds of prey used as the primary mode of transportation in the vast mountain ranges Joya is known for.”

Evergreen blinked at the green-haired mage before repeating insistently, “Birds? Did you just say birds? Massive birds?”

Having studied the beasts through books and the personal account of her native Joyan tutor, the blonde bubbled with excitement as she gushed, her arms flying out to help her prove her point, “Oh yes. The Waldrapps are huge raptors that used to flourish in the wild but those who worship the old gods hunted them to near extinction. Their population is now completely tamed and they are held in extremely high regard. Almost worshipped even themselves for it.”

Sweat was starting to bead on her brows as the brunette looked around nervously, “What if I don’t want to...fly on a bird?”

Laxus’ gruff baritone cut in just before he took a sip from whatever concoction Freed had ordered them, “Tough shit. It’s the only way we are getting into Opalle.”

Lucy felt a wave of sympathy as the Fairy Mage groaned and her shoulders slumped. Evergreen seemed so at ease with all other modes of transport that she didn’t think the take no shit mage would be afraid of flying. “They built Opalle into the face of the highest peak and the Waldrapps are the only way in or out. It’s to keep the capital free of undesirable citizens.”

Bickslow scoffed before adding sarcastically, “That’s the pitch they try to sell anyway, that the city is the safest in Earthland thanks to the genius location and alarming amount of on patrol guards. Opalle is the military headquarter of Joya as well as being the seat for its government.”

“And if what Van says is true, the leader of this country is a paranoid shut in with the mass of Joya’s Royal Army at his fingertips.”

Laxus ran his hands down his face before throwing out, “And this guy has an obsession with magic users related to the sky.”

Freed’s voice sounded from beside the Lightning Mage, directing his inquiries toward the Lunar Slayer. “It’s more specific than that I think because they didn’t request Wendy and her magic is related to air and the sky. What reasoning did he give your father for needing to meet with the White Sea and requesting you specifically?”

While Lucy ordered lunch for the table, Cristoff, Freed and Laxus tried to puzzle out just how all these pieces fit together. Her Seith Mage’s grip on her thigh suddenly tightened and she rushed through the rest of their order before turning her head to look up into the eyes. Her head was tilted and her brows were knitted together as she waited for him to explain what was wrong.

His head ducked lower, close enough that she could see the way his eyes moved in concentric circles as he whispered to her, “I have a very bad feeling about E’merr and I have an even worse feeling about Opalle.”

There wasn’t anything she could say to that. Lucy completely understood what he was talking about. The reluctance she had to trap them what felt like behind enemy lines was like lead weighing her down from the pit of her stomach. It pulled at her heart that she might be dragging her family into yet another dire situation. So she tried her best to reassure him without lying, her hand rubbing circles over the muscle of his thigh as they listened to the sounds around them.

When their food arrived, conversation had turned towards the more positive and upbeat nature their banter usually held as Bickslow tried to get Freed or Lucy to teach him enough Aqrui’bik to get himself into even more trouble much to the chagrin of one Evergreen of Fairy Tail. They were all too distracted to see Laxus had leaned back, his brows furrowed in deep thought.

xXxXxXxXxXx

They weren’t expecting to travel that night but when the maid came in to clean Lucy and Bickslow’s room to find the bathroom flooded, the bed torn apart and shreds of clothing all over the place, management decided they were no longer welcome there either so they really didn’t have a choice but to start down the mountain in the scorching afternoon sun. 

It was another miserable few days off their usual tear down camp, walk like soldiers, eat lunch, walk some more, make camp and pass out routine. One very recent unlucky night for everyone save Laxus, a thunderstorm rolled in and they all had to spend the night trying to keep from getting washed away. Needless to say, they were extremely happy when they got to the outskirts of E’merr.

Until Evergreen watched a Waldrapp take off and about fainted where she stood.

Freed, having met the end of his patience with most near everything around him, rolled his eyes almost dropped the brunette back in the mud.

The Celestial beauty’s lilting voice was filled with an almost serious tone that had Bickslow looking down at her with wide eyes, “I would fight one of those for a shower right now. Not a bath; a shower. I am not worthy of a bathtub right now.”

While the border of Joya was a thick ring of mountains, once you get through those beasts the interior greets you with harsh almost desert-like dry forests with craggy, rocky terrain below that rarely saw sunlight due to the tangle of tree limbs and break both ankles and wills alike. Lucy almost preferred the mountains and that was saying something. 

The deep baritone of her older brother sent a wave of goosebumps up the backs of her arms. She couldn’t tell if they were good or bad and that unnerved her in ways that had her ready to spring into action at a moments notice. “Let’s just get in there and find Van.” No. That tone was wholly bad. Laxus was on edge and that didn’t bode well for the newest Dragon Slayer. She still didn’t fully understand what it really meant to have a piece of a dragon’s soul and how that would affect her usual thought processes surrounded by so many other Dragon Slayers. She was completely blindsided by how much her dragon seemed to feed off not only Laxus’ restlessness but Cristoff’s naturally soothing presence.

Seeming to understand just what was going on without her having to say a word, the Lunar Slayer was at her side in a heartbeat. He was exactly where she needed him to be in order to stay in control. When she felt the familiar weight of her mate’s arm around her shoulders, the blonde swore she heard choirs singing and slowly made her way behind the hulking frame of the Lightning Slayer into the filthy, muddy streets of E’merr.

She had long since tossed her waterlogged and ruined sandals and almost regretted it as they moved further and further into the bowels of the city, the thick, abrasive mud rubbing her feet raw as she went. Children ran from them, feet bare and eyes wide with fear not unlike the way they all seemed to shy away from the regular patrols of ostentatiously dressed guards. Lucy was at odds with herself. She wanted to stop and help them. She wanted to unleash hell on the pretentious bastards that have the nerve to look down on them like they were any less than them. Her grip on the bottom of Bickslow’s shirt tightened as she tried to breathe in and out. It helped for her to close her eyes for the first few minutes but then her ears could start to pick out the whimpers and faint heartbeats of people in need of help. Her help.

“Don’t worry, baby. We are almost there. Just hang on for a little bit longer.” The gentle tone of his voice soothed the dragon but her heart still ached for them. That was something even Bickslow couldn’t ease right now.

When the group finally ducked into a low adobe building, Cristoff and Bickslow were immediately wrapped up in a bearlike hug from the most beautiful, bearlike man Lucy had ever seen. Before she could say anything to Kaleb, Vander was in front of her, gripping her shoulders in a protective embrace as his wine colored eyes gave her a very blatant onceover. The fact that they were shining with everything save their usual mischief gave the Celestial Slayer pause. 

So she let him check over her before she grew irritated with it and just wrapped her arms around his ribs and nestled into the supple leather covering his chest. “I missed you, Red.”

His easy response put the first totally at ease smile on her lips in days. “Aww, Starshine. You know I’m only a sky fall away.”


	13. Step Thirteen: Kill Thirty Minutes

Step Thirteen: Kill Thirty Minutes

By the time they had all settled into the biggest room Kaleb could find away from prying eyes, Lucy was half sitting on both Vander and Bickslow who were sharing one of Joya's signature three person stone couches with Cris, Freed and Ever managed to rustle up a sturdy chair and a crate to sit on while Kaleb and Laxus stood as far apart as they could with this many large bodies in such a condensed space. Not that the smallest slayer was complaining about her spot of course, the meaty thighs of her human cushions were much more comfortable than any other option available to her.

She was humming under her breath while Freed and Ever gushed over the gorgeous oldest Pradesh brother when she noticed the wrinkles between her brother's blond brows were more like canyons and his arms tensed and flexed repeatedly from their crossed position over his chest in a nervous tick that she hadn't seen in years. Even more curious at his obvious dismay, his eyes were fixed at the White Sea's Guildmaster's boots of all things. Her eyes narrowed deviously as neurons were firing a mile a minute due to her little sister senses and her author senses tingling. She knew the Lightning Mage had zero interest in shoes. He had three pairs of identical boots at any given moment; the trashy 'old' boots, the everyday boots and the 'new' boots for when his everyday boots turned to trashy boots. There was a system. He followed it religiously. She made fun of it endlessly.

Before she could wrestle her way out of her very warm and cuddly couch session to grill him, the Shadowquip wrapped his arm around her middle and pulled her sideways fully into his lap.

The duet of complaints from the mated pair caused by her sudden upheaval quickly turned to a trio of complaints when Bickslow tried to turn to grab her and pull her back in his lap and instead all but shoved the unsuspecting Lunar Slayer from the couch in a jerky huff, adding another deep baritone to the mix. Their chorus of voices and yelling grew even more ridiculous when the Fairy Mage's shrill tone layered in on top. The cacophony of grunts and complaints was more than enough to call the attention of the guards but the group of grown mages weren't paying attention at all. It wasn't until the oddly harmonic baritones from Laxus and Kaleb sounded together that they all settled into grumpy grumbling and tossing haughty looks to the others.

That is until Lucy, having settled in an uncomfortable heap sprawled on the Pradesh men's laps, shot from the glorified slab of rock in a hot-blooded flash. "You idiots! Treat me like some flipping toy…'no, come on my lap' 'no, sugar, come to my lap'. Pfft. What a bunch of boobs." After the tiny blonde was finished with her spot-on impressions of the Seith and Shadow mages, she was unintentionally mirroring her fellow blond slayer with her furrowed brows and crossed arms in a way that instantly sent the three youngest Pradesh men in schoolboy fits of laughter while Lucy and Laxus deadpanned and Kaleb rolled his lavender eyes.

The edge to the Mindbender's voice cut through the noise to silence even them. "Enough. We are in a foreign country that has been more hostile than friendly thus far. I don't want to be babysitting you guys while we're here."

Her older brother's deep baritone reiterated his point, "Exactly. We only need to figure out sleeping the night here before we can take one of those mutant eagles to Opalle."

Lucy watched Evergreen inhale enough air to send warnings firing through her neurons that screamed that the Fairy Mage was gearing up for a whole other rant about personal space and being crammed in like sardines and put a stop to that right away by summoning Virgo and speaking a little more firmly than she first intended, "I need this room to sleep all of us comfortably that will need to be fixed before we leave tomorrow, do you think you could handle that for me, Virgo?"

With a faint bow, the pinkette answered evenly, "Of course, Princess. Will you be needing something to eat?"

Vander's easy voice responded from his place on the couch, "Not necessary, frenchie. I've got a surprise in the works for dinner."

Bickslow and Cristoff gave the youngest mage matching sideways questioning looks as Lucy nodded and just accepted the Shadowquip's words, adding onto the aforementioned pair's worry with her easy trust in the self-admitted untrustworthy male. Virgo's usual voice rang through the small space with intent behind her words, "This will be much easier if the room is clear."

"How long will we need to leave?"

"Not longer than half hour. I'll have Aries' help."

Turning with her hands on her hips, the Dragon Slayer reached out with her senses, her magic and abilities flourishing in the late hour, to see if she could place any of the guards heavy footsteps to find the streets teeming with life, quiet and almost imperceivable but there nonetheless. "Well you heard the lady, we've got thirty minutes to kill before we can sleep."

"I'll be taking my leave now. See you soon, kiddies," the smug smile was the last thing she saw from the youngest Pradesh before he entered the Void to bring back what she desperately hoped to be fried food.

"And I'm on cockblock duty for our resident lovebirds." The casual way the Lunar Slayer stood and stretched his back as he spoke had Lucy deadpan staring at him on the basis of him sounding a little too pleased with himself at his declaration as Bickslow mirrored his brother's actions with laughter under his breath. "So I thought we could go for a walk through the always romantic sketchy back alleys of slum city. You know, really set the mood for you two. A mood that screams 'ABSTINENCE' and 'BLACK PLAGUE'." The wide gesture that went with his words was enough to crack her facade and pull giggles from the blonde as they made their way out of the room.

The brunette checked her nails as she asked Freed, "Want to go to the roof and give Mira a call?"

"Anything is better than having to walk through those streets again. They have a pungent kind of odor that really lingers," was the Rune Mage's easy and immediate response.

When it was just Kaleb watching Laxus as he tried his hardest to look anywhere but at him as Virgo started working at moving all the furniture into a organized pile to store in the Spirit World overnight, he could have just pushed into the slayer's head to try and solve the obvious and ridiculous animosity he had towards him. The Mindbender tried his best to not pry, to keep his magic pulled back enough to just skim the thoughts of others but even that was hard when there was so much for him to filter through and Laxus' thoughts were loud and clear; he was definitely uncomfortable alone with him but he couldn't place why.

"I'm gonna go-"

"We should probably-"

Laxus gave his tense shoulders a roll before gesturing for the Mindbender to go ahead.

Kaleb cleared his throat before starting again, "I was hoping to talk to you about what is going to happen when we get to Opalle."

The Lightning Slayer rubbed his hand over his mouth before nodding his head and sweeping his arm to let the platinum blond guildmaster leave first as he and his dragon wrestled for control.

XxXxX Our trio finds entertainment in the most unlikely of ways XxXxX

Looking forlornly down at her already muddied feet, Lucy vowed to be more thankful for whatever short amount of time they were clean as she swung she and Bickslow's conjoined hands between their bodies.

His intoxicatingly smooth voice placated her prickled nerves at being in such an unfamiliar place with a lot of things to take in and process all at once, "How much do you wanna bet Vander forgets he said anything about dinner and falls asleep in a pile of women?"

The Celestial Slayer's voice was bored as she tried to dislodge drying muds from in between her toes, "More likely he forgets and falls asleep on the couch at Casa de Pradesh."

Looking down at his mate with a playful kind of skepticism, he asked as they made their way through the winding alleys that appeared all but abandoned, "What makes you say that, Starlight?"

She gave an absent shrug before stating casually, as if what she was saying wasn't completely insane for the ever-prowling, insatiable Shadow Mage, "He doesn't go out as much and he almost never smells like orgies anymore."

The two Pradesh boys shared a look of concern for their youngest brother before Lucy narrowed her eyes between them and rolled her eyes, "Oh for Mavis' sake, there's nothing wrong with him. When he's not with us, he's usually with Papa Pradesh. He and Farron have been traveling more often than usual and with you and Kaleb here...he just doesn't want anything to happen to anyone so give him a break." She didn't want to jinx anything by saying it out loud but she genuinely thought the poor guy was happy for once and he was killing himself to keep it that way.

Taken aback by the softness of her voice, the Seith's hand tightened around hers before she and Cristoff both stopped dead in the street. Both seeming to strain to hear something. Both nostrils flaring.

His younger brother's voice was low as he whispered to Lucy, "I smell blood and I hear a lot of heart beats but I can't quite place…"

"About three blocks from here. Underground by the sounds of it and...and I think I hear cheering." It was like trying to hear underwater and she was still easily distracted by Bickslow's scent but it was unmistakable.

Bickslow raised his hand sarcastically and waited for the Lunar Slayer to call on him before asking thoughtfully, "And what, pray tell, are we smelling/hearing that is roughly three blocks from here and below street level?"

With a curling devious smile that had her fangs glinting under the light shining from the night sky in ways that stirred his sex drive almost as much as the husky quality of her voice did, "Sounds like a fight to me."

Before the blunette could inquire as to why that had her so excited, Cristoff cut in with his arms over his chest and his brows fixed in a stern line. "No. Not happening, little sis."

Even more shocking than the fatherly tone from his goofball brother being directed at the woman who was essentially his wife was the childlike whine that erupted from said grown, powerhouse of a woman, "Oh, come on. You know it would be fun."

His gaze was unmoving and even as he spoke in measured monotone, "Wrong argument for the wrong brother, princess."

Shaking his head, the blunette grabbed his Celestial Mage's shoulders. His voice incredulous as he whisper-yelled to the pouty mage, "Wait a minute, are you arguing for the side of participating in the underground fight club?!"

"I...might be?" The way she said it, it sounded like even she didn't know for sure. Like her answer was going to depend on his reaction which didn't make him feel better.

They two looked at each other for a minute, sharing a silent exchange that both fascinated and terrified the Lunar Slayer before Bickslow straightened, put his arm around Lucy's shoulders and smiled. "Alright baby, lead the way. I've always been a fan of making bets on illegal things."

"You've got to be kidding me, seriously, Bix? You're just going to- What if this is some- This is a really bad idea." He looked between the brilliant toothy grin of his draconian-sibling and the positively lovestruck look of adoration on his brother's face looking down at his mate and just ran his hands down his face before offering, "After you, Lady Vander. I can't wait to tell him that he missed this. He's going to be incredibly pissed."

Lucy just bounced by as if his words were nothing, Bickslow's babies bobbing behind her in a line, "Thank you, Charming, you really are a vital addition to every outing."

The two brothers watched her bob cheerfully before Cristoff's voice, low and quiet, sounded from just beside his ear, "You know she's gonna wanna get in the ring, right?"

The blunette gave a shrug, his eyes flashing with worry but it quickly faded as he spoke, "Way I see it, she's either gonna fight someone who signed up for the possibility of getting their ass handed to them or she's gonna fight me and frankly, I don't want to fight her. Ever. She kicked my ass before she had like all of the power she has right now and I'd really just like keep our fight tally and my loss tally at an even and permanent one."

Cristoff's rich laughter rang through the streets as he slung his arm around his brother in a half-bear hug, earning melodious giggles from the prowling Celestial Slayer, "By the moon, that is precious."

XxXxXxXxXxXxX Freed and Evergreen get more than they bargained for XxXxXxXxXxXxX

After the pair had managed to climb their way up to the roof without getting seriously injured by rusty jagged metal or rickety handholds, both Freed and Evergreen sat down by a sturdy enough looking ledge and pulled out Lucy's long-since forgotten comm to see if the demoness was still awake.

It only pulsed twice before her sun-shiny face showed up, the bustle of the guild late at night background noise as she chirped, "Hi guys! What's up," her faced suddenly dropped and she held the comm closer, "Is everyone okay?"

The Rune Mage soothed her worries easily, "Everyone is fine, Mira. We were just checking in while Virgo finds a way to have eight of us sleeping comfortably in a room the size of a wax seal, over half being well over six feet tall." Primly brushing some dirt from his hopeless jacket, he stared blankly into the comm at Mira's relaxed, smiling face.

"Where are the rest of the team? Is Lucy there?"

Leaning into Freed's shoulder, the Fairy Mage drawled as if she were already half bored with the conversation, "Who knows what she and those boys are doing right now and then Laxus and Kaleb walk out like somebody died it was that dramatic. Total funeral procession."

Nodding to the brunette, Mira tilted her head quizzically, her smile still firmly in place, "Well, no one's died on our end. How have Lucy and Laxus been getting along? I know just how he can be on a mission and Lucy's been changing. There's something about her now. Natsu is convinced she's a vampire but I think she's in love. You have to tell me if she's in love." Her voice dropped low and Ever cringed just slightly.

Freed cleared his throat before starting, "Well, she and Bix are quite taken with each other but I'm not so certain as to where he would get the impression Lucy is a vampire."

"He is also suspicious of Laxus and said there were two mages he's never seen before hanging out with Lucy but when I asked him about them, he gave me nothing except a loud complaint about how he was supposed to work like this when he didn't have his partner here to handle his emotions. I swear to Mavis, I've never been more frustrated with him in my life."

The two Thunder Legion members stared at the silverette for a minute before Evergreen blinked and spoke cautiously, "Those could be any one of three of Bix's brothers. The dark-haired, blue-eyed teddy bear is Cristoff, the one with red tips and a shit-eatting grin is Vander and though doubtful, we also picked up an older Pradesh named Kaleb. He is an angel sent straight from heaven."

Mira was about to open her mouth and be offended for her brother before Freed interceded, "I can confirm that the Mindbender is heaven sent. Any person with eyes would agree, Elfman included."

Her mouth promptly closed, albeit a little bit sourly.

"Speaking of Elfman, where is the man?" She drawled out the word 'man' in such a way that had the oldest Strauss giggling in no time.

"He and Lis went on a job together. Natsu has been driving everyone nuts and they needed a break. They just left this morning actually." The barmaid absently picked up a glass mug and started wiping it with the rag that had been slung over her shoulder.

Hiding her disappointment well, she smirked convincingly, "I cannot imagine how nuts the boy is going without Lu there to help the on fire garbage can."

Mira's shoulders sagged just a little as she spoke sadly, "He really hasn't been so bad but after the last mission, Gramps had to ground him and he's come to the guild every day since then, threatening to fight everyone and setting chairs on fire. I almost can't keep up with it anymore."

Before either of them could try to reassure the poor barmaid, Cana popped in next to Mira, pouring her own drink after biting the spout from the top. She was talking despite the metal tube between her teeth, "How's my little Lulu peach doin' with your good friend Bickslow?"

The Rune and Fairy mages shared a confused look, thoughts firing between them before he finally narrowed his eye and retorted, "What has Lucy told you about her relations with Bickslow?"

The drunkard gave an absent shrug before setting the bottle down, jamming the spout back in and putting it back under the bar, her voice distracted, "Now that you mention it, not much at all. Just what little she gushed about before you all left on this freakish mission, which by the way, totally do not approve of. I get heebies just thinking about you guys over there, so far away."

While Freed had always been fascinated with the Card Mages magic, he never paid it much mind but Evergreen would live by it if she could. "What do you mean? Have you done readings?"

After an unhealthy gulp of whatever liquor she poured herself, Cana finally looked at the comm. "I have. The first few, I couldn't get a clear reading. I was only looking at Lucy. It was like something was keeping her from her future and preventing me from seeing her clearly so I tried to just focus on the group of you. It wasn't until a few weeks ago that I could read her again and it was...After I found her and dealt the cards, it was like I was being caged, like gravity shifted and it got hard to breathe then I lose the connection, every time. It's the same with Laxus but with his- It's not nearly as bad; I can still breathe when I draw his cards and my body doesn't ache."

The rowdy bustle from the guild filled the silence as Evergreen contemplated the fact that she was probably going to die because of a giant, creepy bird and Freed fought the illogical wave of fear, genuine fear, that tickled deep in the pit of his stomach.

As if completely unperturbed by Cana's words, Mira bubbled cheerfully, "Well, I've got to get back to it but we miss you guys and be sure to come home safely!"

"And bring me back fancy dancy booze!" The brunette had slung her arm around Mira's waist casually as the silver-haired woman waved before cutting the magic, leaving both Freed and Evergreen to sit in very uncomfortable silence to mull over this new information.

XxXxX Laxus has to admit that he has feelings to Kaleb XxXxX

The modelesque pair of blonds made their way through the backstreets in brooding, heavy silence. Laxus' thoughts were forcefully focused on the newest Dragon Slayer and it was so abrasive, Kaleb had to say something before his headache blossomed into a migraine. "Listen, I honestly don't know what's going on with you and it is literally painfully obvious that you do not want me to know what it is, but Opalle is going to require you let me in so we can at least all communicate with each other at all times. The city is crawling with soldiers, not guards, soldiers. World renown soldiers who have absolute rule within the boundaries of the city and from what Van tells me and what I've seen from my other brothers, you lot have a bad track record."

The Lightning Mage wanted to be angry at very least the dig at his team but he couldn't. For some reason, he was in complete agreeance with the ethereally beautiful man. He gave a slow nod of his head before closing his eyes and leaning against the wall beside him in an almost defeated slump.

It took a few moments, but Kaleb heard his rough voice drawl from the shadow, "How do you balance being a guild's master and still having a life? I'm not even master yet and I spend all my time not on missions behind my desk deciphering reports. The only reason I haven't completely lost it is because of Blondie. She's a miracle worker when it comes to all the numbers and reports to the Magic Council."

Kaleb wasn't totally convinced this was the root of the problem but he would take what he could get from the emotionally constipated brute. "I happen to be a genius with an affinity for paperwork. I developed a system, run completely on lacrima, that sorts reports, assesses my mages and suggests the best jobs based on an individual's skills and level of experience. So I'll ask you this instead of answering your question, would your life be significantly less stressful if you took paperwork completely out of the picture?"

A low chuckle sounded from the shadow before Laxus came back into view under the clear night sky, his lips drawn into a small but genuine grin that had Kaleb's thoughts treading into dangerously hot waters. While he might not be like Vander or even Cristoff, sex was always a release, a break, from the constant barrage that his magic brought and while he usually happened to lean toward the female persuasion for company, he'd been with plenty of men and absolutely none of them, male or female, made his gut tighten with need like it was right now. His voice was edged with a lighter tone that pulled his focus enough to drown out the rest of the world, "Without paperwork? I could probably manage to do something other than train or work. Maybe even get to take a vacation. It's been awhile since I saw Arman and the Grass Sea."

Settling on not questioning the thing keeping him relatively sane before heading into what was without a doubt going to be a shit show, the Mindbender just offered as casually as he could, "Do you good to come to the Sea and see how the system works. You'll just have to rope your little sister into watching your Fairies while you're in Bosco."

"Tch, after this fucking job? She owes me." He waited a beat before adding thoughtfully, "I've always been...bad when it comes to her. Between my own fucked up need to keep her close and my dragons need to murder everyone who touches her- I can't lose her. She's everything good and now she's really not going to be able to fly under the radar with her becoming a slayer and being mated to Bix, no one will leave her alone."

Letting out a snort of scoff, Kaleb asked the Lightning Slayer genuinely, "Do you really think your sister would let anything get between her and the people she loves? I've never been more impressed with the capabilities of a single mage than I am with the only Celestial Dragon Slayer known in recorded existence, I very severely pity anyone that has to go toe to toe with your sister."

xXxXxXx Meanwhile, on the other side of the city xXxXxXx

The man, with his bloodied wrapped hands held them up, desperately trying to cover his face from the onslaught of blows coming from the unbelievable compact woman, deeply regretted stepping into the ring with her. In her defense, she had warned them that she wouldn't go down easily even after they reassured her that the ring suppressed all magics with snickers under their breaths.

This was the last thought he had before he stumbled backwards and gave the unrelenting force of nature an opening that she took it without hesitation, knocking him out before he even hit the bouncy material of the ring.

The room was dead silent before both Pradesh boys started cheering like crazy which quickly escalated to the whole room cheering for the new invincible mystery woman. She had taken one hit to the ribs but recovered and dodged everything since that and she had won her mate a very large amount of jewel with the victory, pleasing both her dragon and the cackling mohawked blunette counting silver coins.

After another five rounds and another five victories, they were very rudely expelled from the illegal establishment with an excessive bag of money and a contagious case of the giggles.

Which is how the trio stumbled into their makeshift home for the night, almost every inch of the floor covered in the thick soft wool that only came from her sweet Ram spirit, and Ever and Freed had claimed spots closest to the door, already passed out.

"They were already out when I came back." Vander's voice called lazily from where he was sprawled out in the corner like a cat in sunlight, surrounded by containers of delicious smelling foods of all sorts. Food she could tell was deep fried.

Lucy spoke excitedly as she took a towel from Virgo to wash her feet as best she could while gesturing wildly with her words, "You shoulda seen me, Red! You'd have been so proud. We found a fight club and I'm the reigning champion now," before crawling across the plush fluff and popping a tempura shrimp into her mouth. His deep wine eyes never left hers as he waited for her to continue with a crooked smile on his face. After she had finished chewing and let out a satisfied sigh, "And Bixy won a bunch of money because I'm amazing."

"You did what now?" It was in that moment that Kaleb and Laxus came back, the latter immediately jumping on the information the blonde offered lazily as both Bickslow and Cristoff all but scampered away from the Lightning Dragon.

Rolling her eyes, she grabbed something she hoped was a potsticker but found herself not caring too much if it wasn't, "I said I'm a million-dollar undefeated champion and you missed it because you are a fun sucker who sucks the fun right outta stuff. As fun suckers do." She spoke casually before jamming the whole potsticker in her mouth and smiling at him with chipmunk cheeks.

His resolve held for about five seconds before he let out a quiet breathy laugh, "Whatever, honestly I'm just glad none of you are in jail."

"The faith you have in us is almost alarmingly touching, Bossman. Really, I think I might cry." The blunette teased from where he laid his head on Lucy's thigh before opening his mouth in hopes of getting a mouthful of tasty eggroll or cheese wonton.

It was Lucy who waved the oldest mages over to the food, her bubbly mood infectious and quickly making the rest of the night a pleasant one before they drifted off, hoping for the best when the woke the next morning.


	14. Step Fourteen: Do Not Antagonize the Death Crow

Step Fourteen: Do Not Antagonize the Death Crow

She had been having the most surreally mundane dream about being back in her pink apartment, in her soft bed, cocooned in heat only given from the living bodies of her team, remembering how good it feels to be surrounded by loved ones when she became very aware that she was suddenly very conscious of the fact she was no longer asleep and in a country ready to eat her up. However, she was still being cradled in soft pink and she was still buried under the warmth of human beings and then it really hit her what that meant. She was at the center of a Boscan Thunder Legion sandwich. Beneath her cheek was the exquisitely carved chest of her cuddly mate, one arm under his head and the other wrapped around her waist as she nuzzled into his warmth to pull lazy smiles from him. His fingers were dangerously close to chest under her tank top and she was about ninety percent sure either Vander or Cristoff had decided to join in on the cuddles by tossing an arm over Bickslow's and by the weight of it, it was their resident Shadowquip.

Lifting her head to try to inspect where her other teammates ended up, the Celestial beauty had to forcefully swallow her laughter as she took in the scene beside her. Vander was firmly spooning into Bickslow's side, his chin using the Seith's toned shoulder as a pillow while Cristoff's arms, the slayer was lying on his back beside Vander, were somehow being used as a pillow by Bickslow, Vander and Laxus by means of his arms being firmly tucked under their necks and on the other side of him was Laxus, arms crossed over his chest but still as tucked into the Lunar Slayer as ever with Cristoff's arm curling around his neck to rest on his chest shy of his fingers. The cherry on the cake was Kaleb lying on his stomach next to the Lightning Slayer with an arm slung over his hips in a way that she immediately pegged as possessive. Precariously low on his hips as well, but maybe that was wishful thinking. Laxus was an ass and tits guy. Although, Kaleb was really well built. Definitely never skipped leg day. Or chest day. All the while Freed and Evergreen stayed exactly where they initially laid down. Lucy was actually impressed that some people actually managed to just lay there undisturbed while they slept.

If only there was some way for her to take a picture. Oh the things she could do with that picture.

I haven't slept this well in years, fatina. Just lay back down and enjoy your Boscan Thunder Legion Sandwich.

On instinct, she wanted to pull away from Bickslow and stare at the Mindbender, having been the first time he's just talked to her in her mind but the sleepy lilt to the usually serious mage's voice had her laying her head back down and focusing on the steady thumping of her mate's heart to give him as long as he could have.

This peace lasted for another hour at most before their early to rise tendencies started a low wave of grumbles starting at Freed and hitting each of the mages before finally landing on Lucy herself.

Laxus' gruff morning voice broke the silence with a touch of resignation, "That was the best sleep I've ever gotten."

In a flurry, the little blonde had lifted her torso up to not only stare openly at her brothers words and just how closely they hit to a certain platinum blond guildmaster but to watch as the Lightning Slayer gave Kaleb's a squeeze before rubbing both his hands through his hair and down his face. The action looked absent, like he hadn't even realized he did it.

Lucy was pretty sure her face was about to crack with the sheer size of the cheshire grin spreading from her lips. This was an excellent development in the mystery that was White Lightning, the name she internally gave the non-couple/couple's file where she stowed these moments. She had always been a huge fan of the idea of Laxus finding his mate and no one would understand the pressure of being the Master of a renown, functioning guild like Kaleb. Not to mention the Mindbender wouldn't have much trouble trying to figure out what the broody man was thinking.

The Seith Mage having just woke up to the very creepy toothy grin of his usually bubbly mate was a little worried at the sight before he realized his shoulder was soaked and that took precedence over the Celestial Mage's ridiculous face. Looking down to see Vander with his mouth wide open and a spit pool the size of the bay stretching from where his baby brother's lips touched his shirt all the way down Cristoff's arm to gather in a dark pink spot in Aries' wool, he instantly smacked the side of Vander's unsuspecting head. "Gods, bro, that will never not be gross. How do you sleep with real people with this much saliva?"

With a sleepy grin and his eyes closed, the raven-haired Shadow Mage wiped at his chin lazily and mumbled almost incoherently, "...usually like the moisture…" before turning over and cuddling under the raven-haired slayer's welcoming arm.

Both Lucy and Bickslow let out matching 'awww's before he flipped the now giggling pair off and tried to go back to sleep.

The Lunar Slayer had other plans for his brother as he pulled both the Shadow Mage and Laxus in closer to his body as he stretched his back and yawned, practically strangling his innocent victims. His voice was like Lucy's was early in the morning, too bright and too cheery, "Mornin' little cubs. I trust everyone slept well."

"I trust everyone knows just how little I care for people this early in the morning?" Evergreen's tired tone was less than threatening and she didn't seem all too put out by it as the brunette sat straight up like a zombie to go through her usual routine in the morning.

Lucy was about to ask her brother what time they needed to get up and moving to make their bird to the capital when she witnessed yet another hand squeeze, this time Kaleb to Laxus in a move that might have been sympathy for his younger brother's chokehold but that didn't explain the previous gesture, just before the Mindbender rolled over and sat up to talk to everyone. "Before we leave for the aviary, I need sit you all down and tell you how arriving in Opalle will go but for now, get up and get ready for half a days ride in the open basket courtesy of a giant bird of prey."

It took another few minutes before everyone really started getting moving on account of no one wanting to go to Opalle. Virgo and Aries took care of the wool and set the room back up like it was before they made cuddle-central out of it as the ladies set up a makeshift changing area which Freed was the very first to claim and make use of.

When they all finished up and had eaten whatever protein bars Cetus had forced on them, they were sitting very much like they had been the night before except instead of Lucy being a lap ornament, she opted to lean on the wall next to her brother, whose mood seemed to have at least settled into neutrality which was an improvement from the boot-staring and constant fissure between his brows.

"As I've told Laxus," the White Sea's Guildmaster had taken over the moment he put the pristine stark white armor on and the tone of his voice was that of the kind of people you just felt like you needed to listen to, "the city of Opalle is crawling with the men of the Royal Army and they are the law, unquestionably. Both Laxus and I have talked it through and agree that it would be best if I link our minds so we can communicate at all times while in the city. I also feel the need to clarify that while both Lucy and Cristoff are guests of the King, we are not going to be allowed any wiggle room." He took a moment to pause and look over each their faces individually, lingering on Bickslow and Vander before continuing, "Four things I need you to be conscious of at all times: one, the city of Opalle houses the elite and upper class of Joyan royalty and government as well as the country's richest and most influential families so best behavior, two, everyone save Van, Cris and I are civilian class and you will be reminded of this often and abrasively which you will need to take with a gracious smile, three, their laws are cut and dry and their punishments are harsh, and my personal favorite twist, any woman traveling in the city must be accompanied by a man of higher standing at all times unless she owns property, has children, or is married. Since none of these things apply to you ladies, you'll have to always have a Pradesh with you. Unfortunately for our slayer twins, you two will always have either myself or Laxus with you at all times."

Lucy's voice was firm as she took in the information, "What about Van? Where will he be?"

The youngest Pradesh smirked at the blonde, her unabashed concern for him always making his chest feel lighter, "I'll be prowling and lurking in the shadows as usual. Someone has to keep an eye on old king crackpot and the beautiful princess." His exaggerated wink had chuckles sounding from around the room.

Kaleb rolled his eyes before stating evenly, "The crown Princess of Joya has recently become engaged to be married and since I know for a fact that there will be no Mrs Vander Pradesh's anytime soon, leave the princess alone, Van."

He held his hands up in surrender before elbowing Bickslow's side with his usual shit-eating grin on his face.

The Mindbender stated again, much more firmly, "Leave the princess alone, Van."

xXxXxXxXxXxXx

Their morning meeting adjourned and Bickslow watched as Lucy and Freed practically morphed into one single super form of excitement at the prospect of riding one of Joya's Waldrapps and couldn't help but smile how perfectly she fit into his life. Meanwhile Evergreen was practically glued between Kaleb and Laxus' bodies as if the sheer amount of muscle between the two fo them could cushion her if she fell from the bird she had yet to see. He couldn't wait to see her face when she saw one of them up close. While he himself thought they were really cool looking, they definitely topped the unique chart. It was like squishing together a turkey buzzard with a ruby-throated hummingbird and blowing it up to be the size of a house and it was terrifying. So she would hate it and he would get a laugh.

It wasn't until Vander literally popped in front of him to send them both tumbling before he shadow stepped and Bickslow's babies caught him just before he hit the ground, drawing the attention of a trio of guards walking the opposite direction as them.

Clearing his throat, the Seith gave his best winning smile and a slight wave before widening his steps to catch up with his still bubbling mate, his hand winding around her waist as she gave him a quick smile before turning her attention back to the Rune Mage.

"The first humans to ride the Waldrapps were actually nomadic tribes who followed the food through the mountains and weirdly enough, the first recordings of them always mentioned them riding at night but my instructor was firm in his beliefs that they just couldn't see the riders on their backs during the day which made absolutely no sense to me growing up because hello, why would they be able to see any clearer at night, you know? But I thought that was really cool. The part about nomads learning to ride them anyway."

Freed's smooth voice picked up almost immediately after hers died down, both enthralled with the conversation, "And now they are so used to humans as a species that they have to keep them in massive aviaries or they scavenge in the city streets. The Thothis are specially trained to acclimate the young, impressing upon them to create a lifelong bond. I read that most of the thoth actually live inside the aviaries to remain close to the birds."

"People actually trap themselves in cages with these birds?" Evergreen's voice was higher pitched than usual from the obvious fear she had not for flying, but for birds. A fear Lucy totally understood in the abstract. Birds had the evolutionary edge of flight and razor-sharp talons and they bobbed their heads in ways that made her uncomfortable.

Cristoff's soothing voice sounded from the other side of the Seith Mage, "The aviaries encompass nearly all the surrounding land outside Opalle's walls. The area of the city isn't even one tenth the size set aside for them. I've never been inside but it's a bizarre sight to see the countryside with a massive bird cage over it."

The brunette took in the information with caution. "So these birds aren't wild? They're well-trained?"

Giving her a reassuring smile, Lucy tried to make her feel better. "I mean as well-trained as giant bird-horses."

She gave a small nod to her head and looked down to mumble to herself quietly, "Bird-horses. I can work with bird-horses. I've always liked regular horses. How bad could bird versions be?"

As if Lucy could sense the snide remark on his infamous tongue, she gave the grinning Seith Mage's stomach a firm elbow before reassuring her girlfriend again, "Don't worry, Ever. Laxus and Kaleb are going to stay right by your side for the trip that way you have two solid objects to hold on to."

The Fairy Mage was nodding absently as Laxus sent her a droll look to convey 'jokes on you, I wasn't going anywhere anyway' as Kaleb teased, "I don't know how I feel about being used for my body."

Her voice was haughty as she flipped her hair behind her shoulder, "I'm not using you for your body, I'm using you for your cushioning."

Both men looked down at the brunette quizzically before deciding to let it go and focus on getting on the bird-bus in the first place.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

They should have known getting on the damn thing wouldn't be easy.

Evergreen refused to move from between their bodies the moment she saw the Waldrapp and the attendant was trying to determine her 'class' and marital status through her flip-flopping emotional state all the while Lucy and Bickslow were pretending to be a couple of newlyweds on their honeymoon who happened to be personal guests of the King, Vander being Lucy's handmaiden and Cristoff being Bickslow's bodyguard, in an over the top display of acting and dramatics that both Kaleb and Laxus was sure was about to lead to a musical number if they didn't put a stop to it.

To make matters worse, only Kaleb, Lucy and Freed could speak the language fluently and no one was keeping an eye on Vander's wandering. In a moment of unchecked aggression for the Lightning Slayer, he let out a definitive warning growl and everyone, Joyan workers included, fell silent and stared at the sneering brute.

Without missing a beat or the opportunity the blond bought him, Kaleb quickly handled getting everyone's paperwork to the right people while Laxus got everyone seated. Cristoff having to put the Fairy Mage to sleep and carry her onto the Waldrapp as the only real solution.

The moment the bird spread its impressive wings, Lucy was in heaven. She thought she would be actually riding on the bird but being carried in a glorified basket like some old fashioned muffin basket had her giddy. The breeze in her hair, the ever so slight breathlessness, it made her miss flying. It really made her miss her nakama. "Do you think there is a secret code word for 'drop those people and save yourself'?"

Giving his radiant woman a playful look, he wiggled his brows before drawling, "Want to see if we can figure it out?"

A quick smack came to the back of his head just as his older brother walked by. "Do not antagonize the death crow, children."

Letting out an utterly ridiculous whine, the blunette slumped dramatically in his seat beside his mate, her shoulders shaking with laughter, "Come on, mom. You never let us have any fun."

Sensing he was somehow needed, Vander chimed in from his lounged spot across from Lucy, "I can testify to this."

"Only gonna say it once, Van, behave or be invisible."

"Killjoy."

"Horndog."

The back and forth was so casual, it almost felt like it had happened many a time before and that little blurt of a thought had the buxom beauty clutching her stomach with barely contained peals of laughter at the thought of someone like Kaleb giving someone like Vander a 'talking to'.

Since they all had a connection to the blonde's mental movie playing in her head thanks to the Mindbender, Bickslow, Laxus and Cristoff quickly joined in on her laughter while the two remaining Pradesh brothers deadpanned on account of the sheer number of times Kaleb has had this exact conversation with the Shadow Mage before and every single time Vander didn't listen, something less than ideal happens that Farron or worse, their father, needed to get involved.

"Oi, Blondie," the deep casual draw of the Lightning Slayer called from the front where Cristoff was letting Evergreen use his thigh for a pillow, "come up here a minute."

Shoving Vander's boots from her lap and pressing a quick kiss to both her mate's cheek and his temple, Lucy looped her arm through Kaleb's and escorted the Wizard Saint to the front whether he wanted to come or not, hearts flaring to life deep in her golden-brown eyes. "Coming, brother dearest."

Which both the youngest Pradesh and the mohawked Pradesh mimicked with obnoxiously high-pitched girly voices and fluttering lashes, "Coming, brother dearest."

Earning a glare from the tiny blonde and a round of chuckles from everyone else.

Without letting go until Lucy was sandwiched between Laxus and Kaleb's hulking builds on the surprisingly well-padded seats, the Celestial Slayer looked up into familiar steel-blue eyes and melted into his side without hesitation. "What do you need, Sparklers?"

Like the pair has done a million times before, he lifted his arm and wrapped it around her shoulders, both soothing his dragon with the contact from his kin and her low, contented purring. His voice was its usual easy measure, "Cana's been doing readings and she's worried about you. I need you to promise me you won't do any heroics while we are in Opalle."

She stiffened before starting to play with the trim of his jacket, running the soft fur through her fingers in measured motions as she spoke softly, "You know I can't do that, Laxus."

Taking a deep breath, he ran his free hand through his hair. He should have known better than to use that particular phrasing. "I can't wait for this fucking job to be over."

"You and me both," but where he was expecting her voice to be quiet, it was full of mischief and before she knew it, a chorus of complaints was rolling through the team at the flashes of her one single night with Bickslow flashed in her head. This left the Seith Mage with a smug look on his face as his tongue dropped from his mouth and Vander to lean towards him to give him a high five.

"No, just no. I thought we covered this. I don't need to know anything about whatever goes on between you two and now even my brain isn't safe. Go back to your seat and go back to thinking about birds." The Thunder God practically picked her up and pushed her out into the aisle before returning to his seat and leaning his head back and putting his sound pods on, trying to ignore the few inches between he and Kaleb's arm without realizing it was all he was focused on.

Having been dismissed, the Celestial Dragon Slayer slumped back into her seat, Vander's boots immediately moving to her lap even though he had a whole bench to himself, and watched the clouds move like lazy ocean waves while her mate's lithe fingers traced over the back of her hand in swirling, hypnotizing patterns.

Thankfully the rest of the flight went well and landing was relatively painless since all they had to do was get out of the basket but now they needed to make their way to the castle where the king and his elite army of men were waiting for them. Or that was what they thought would happen.

Instead, they were met at the docks by what looked to be a very extravagant welcome party, making everyone immediately fall into an uncomfortable false neutrality as deeply tanned men and woman started poking and prodding at the group of them with wide, mostly creepily too happy smiles on their faces. One voice rang above them all, a grating male voice backed by a sense of privilege that was so great it rang apparent even in his speech, "Please! Welcome to the Great Jewel of Joya, Opalle. King Illium is most excited to receive such honored guests. If you will allow me, I'm Executer Towe and I'll be escorting you to the palace."

Kaleb went through the round of introductions before Lucy's lilting voice spoke up, "Excuse me, Executer Towe? What is it you do here in Opalle exactly?"

With a neutral grin that somehow made her even more uncomfortable, the older Joyan answered easily, "I'm the king's ruling hand by carrying out and enforcing his word."

As if that didn't raise a whole other list of questions, Executer Towe walked ahead of the group with his hands behind his back and the tip of his nose in the air marking the end of that discussion.

Narrowing her eyes at the back of his head, she was unfazed when the blunette ducked down to whisper in her ear, his arm already around her shoulders in both a possessive and protective gesture as they walked through the immaculate streets, "Are you waiting for your laser vision to finally manifest?"

Without breaking contact or stride, she answered easily, "Couldn't hurt."

We haven't even made it the castle yet and you're already trying to murder people. I expected better of you, Blondie.

Rolling her eyes before sticking her tongue out at the Lightning Slayer, she mouthed, Bite me, Spark plug, before threading her fingers with her Seith Mage's over her shoulder and taking in as much of the city as she could.

The architecture was simple but flawless with massive stone blocks as the base for all their buildings. It was breathtakingly gorgeous with its bright jewel tone accents and bordering excessive amounts of greenery. What surprised her most about the city were the canals of water that linked countless pools and fountains to one another throughout the streets, the literal jewels that sparkled beneath the crystal clear water almost made her forget that she wasn't here as a tourist. What did not surprise her about being in a city built into the side of a mountain was the amount of steps she had to walk up. It was like the Waldrapp dropped them off at the base of the mountain and not in the dead center of downtown and she was about two seconds away from openly cursing the idiots in charge of this piss poor infrastructure when the 'castle' finally came to view.

The building was massive, with rows and rows of fat columns and clean corners. The King's Palace was impressive to say the least and both Lucy and Freed looked like they were in information overload walking up even more sets of stairs to the open arching entrances and intricate murals that covered every wall depicting scenes from the ancient history of Joya.

It was when the heel of her boot hit the top landing that it really sunk in that she was here about to meet the batty king of the pretty stairs and this was happening. Obviously it's much easier to think about the things you'll have to face when they are still in the abstract but here she was and instead of the dread she was expecting, she felt oddly calm. Uncomfortably calm. After all the warnings and bad feelings and obstacles, this would be the pivotal moment that determines how the job goes and how soon she can get on with her life. Despite the growing nerves coming from the rest of her party save Vander already gone from sight thanks to the plentiful shadows provided by beautiful patterned canopies, Lucy was ready to face whatever she needed to do to get back home.

As if she needed another dragon thrown into the mix in this moment, instead of taking the final step onto the landing she was stepping into the tight embrace of Draco. Her voice muffled into the fabric of his expertly tailored suit after she sighed uselessly, "Fancy meeting you here. What brings you out?"

The Celestial Dragon wrapped his daughter further up into his arms, completely not caring about the visibly alarmed soldiers guarding the palace at the intimidating man's presence. "You haven't been checking in."

"Are you saying you haven't been watching me?" Her response was teasing as she nuzzled further under the dragon's chin, both out of respect and affection for her father.

Draco stiffened before sulkily mumbling, "I have to share the reflecting pool now."

Her brow raised as she smirked up at the dragon pointedly scanning the faces surrounding them, "Now?"

"Yes, now. Insolent child."

Giving him a warm smile that shined in the depths of her gaze, she asked earnestly, "And what happened that you only just now have to share?"

Making a show of fixing his already perfect cuffs, the dark-haired man launched into the scene. "I was minding my own business-"

His slayer raised her hand to stop him, "Objection."

Her gave her a dull look of boredom before crossing his arms over his broad chest. "I've only just started, what could you possibly have to object?"

"You were not minding your own business." The way she said it made it sound irrefutable, which the dragon thought debatable at best.

"How dare you! I most certainly was minding my own business."

Shaking her head back and forth, she was bouncing on the balls of her feet as she spoke, airy and light, "Mm-mmm, you were minding my business."

"False. You are my business so your business is my business."

"That doesn't make any sense."

"It makes perfect sense and you know it."

The Pradesh boys all watched in a kind of awe as they watched Draco, the Celestial Dragon and mate to the Lunar Dragon, intimidating and dangerous creature known for his cool attitude and not his reputation for affection, have a mundane, totally regular argument with his child.

Lucy's hands her on her cocked hips, her mouth drawn into a tight smile as she tried to keep her laughter from offended him. "So there you were, watching me through the pool when…"

Narrowing his golden gaze, he continued with little care for his tone. "When your housecat joined me, which is fine, I don't mind the quiet company. When Cetus joined us as well, I thought nothing of it since the spirit is so well-mannered. It wasn't until Phoenix and Cepheus showed up that I started growing impatient with their inane conversations and somehow, the pool was...spilled."

"You spilled the reflecting pool."

He gave a nod of his head.

"The ancient, millenia old reflecting pool."

He gave another nod of his head.

"And Mustachio didn't have anything to say about that?" The question was more of a statement and the way her dragon refused to keep eye contact with her had her wondering just how mad the Spirit King got.

"I told you I have to share now, or at least I'll have to start sharing when the pool fills with water again."

Lucy could barely contain her amusement at the ridiculousness of it all. "You are priceless."

"It wasn't like I was solely to blame for the water becoming displaced. I just so happened to be the first one to come out and check on you." She burst into belly laughter as he defended himself further completely unnecessarily.

"Don't worry, I still love you. By the way, welcome to the palace. We were about to go meet the king if you wanted to join us." Making a wide gesture behind the striking man, she tried to rein in her leftover giggles as she took in the aggressively confused faces of the native population.

It was then that the pair became acutely aware of the attention they were receiving from not only their own company and the guards but every set of eyes in the courtyard. Ranging from the soldiers to high ranking officials and their families to the members of the royal court, every single stare was one them.

He bent down to kiss her forehead before disappearing completely and leaving her to stand there, floundering as their stares quickly turned expectant and impatient. She rubbed the back of her head before choking out weakly, "Anyone ever see a Celestial Mage before?"


	15. Step Fifteen: Sprinkle in Another Pradesh

Step Fifteen: Meet Another Pradesh

Somewhere along the line of communication, they were 'misinformed' about the meeting time with the king himself so the group was herded into a huge beautifully decorated room with four, count them four, pools of crystal clear water. Each almost spilling with beautiful water lilies as koi swam lazily from pool to pool via the little canals connecting them throughout the palace in an intricately beautiful means of moving cool water through the halls. Overall, Lucy thought the whole thing lovely if a little too cagey for her tastes with everything being stone.

They had barely started wandering through the different rooms of their own little wing within the palace when another handmaiden came through the open doorway drawing the attention of everyone save Vander, the Shadowquip melding into the dark to be the eyes and ears all over the castle.

The girl looked barely fifteen as she gave a deep bow before keeping her head lowered to speak to Lucy, "Es-Sayidda, the High Priest will see you now."

Both impressed at the level of civility and the accented but smooth way she spoke their language, Lucy tried to keep her tone measured even though they had basically been manhandled in to a waiting area just to be summoned by someone who wasn't even on their radar before. "Who is the High Priest and what do they want to speak with me about?"

Kaleb's voice rang clear in her head, She doesn't know anything, Lucy. Servant class aren't paid enough to care and this one wouldn't tell us anything anyway.

The handmaid's silence was all that met the blonde before letting her know they would be ready to meet this High Priest after washing up and changing. The only sign that her words were registering was the slight dip of her chin to signify her understanding before standing dutifully in the doorway to wait.

It wasn't long before they were silently marching through the cool stone corridors of the palace behind the yet named young woman. Thankfully Lucy decided to ditch her shoes completely and the smooth blocks beneath her feet were like jolts of life through her nerves. It seemed almost funny to her now looking back to the day she got the job from Gramps. She was going to take Gildarts of all people with her and now she was walking through the halls of Joya's Royal Palace with a whole slew of Pradeshes and dragon slayers and Fairies, two out of three applying to herself with the hopes of eventually becoming all three.

This time, it was Cristoff's voice circling through her head, That's it my pretties. Let's just all become one massive Pradesh family. Ever, I hope you're okay with becoming a lesbian because I've only got sisters left.

Please tell me you are trying to picture our little Free-free with Zadi. The unmistakable draw of her mate was quickly followed by the unseen but not unheard youngest Pradesh brother.

Please, the poor thing would be creating runes to keep himself away from her. She'd break him before anything fun could happen.

Just then a choked noise came from the green-haired mage before he swallowed the outburst and settled back into his usual reserved manner just as they were motioned through an immense squared archway framing an absurd amount of steps.

A totally involuntary groan left both Evergreen and Lucy at the sight of them.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

About three quarters of the way up, Evergreen had eagerly taken the Lunar slayer up on his offer to give her a lift to the top and Bickslow had jokingly jumped on the Celestial slayer's back only to realize that his tiny mate was carrying him pretty easily, the length of his legs the only thing hindering her as they went.

Kaleb and Laxus were just about to see over the landing when man dressed in clean white with a leopard pelt thrown over his shoulder came huffing down the steps, his anger making his face bright red and very unattractive. Uncaring for who they were, he barreled through them without more than a glance at any given one.

Carefully righting themselves, Laxus gave a grunt to get them moving as Lucy and Cris shared a mutual look of displeasure. Whatever lay at the top of the stairs was making them both a little more on edge than the rest of the team only and when she could take in the pyramid-shaped room did her breath catch at the beauty of the carved lines of ancient hieroglyphs that covered every block in neat rows that almost took her breath completely away until the soft bustle of people drew her from the walls to take in the ambling bodies and kneeling figures at shrine-like gold statues of the Gods. She recognized them all but the biggest and most opulent was that of Amun-Ra. That was were a short figure was kneeling at the King of the Gods feet, their robes setting them apart from the other priests with gold and silver threading as the clean cotton layers spread over the stones around them in a crisp pool that made Lucy sweat just looking at all the different pieces of fabric involved.

In a fluid whirl of fabric that was much too practiced to be chance, the mystery priest had turned, the even braids of her midnight hair swinging from the weight of the gold bands and beads decorating the short angular bob of hair peeking from beneath the intricate silver and gold falcon headdress covering most of her deep copper toned face save the tip of her nose, only visible due to the sharp angle of the beak following the bridge of her nose, her full dark lips and the slight point to her chin, her eyes sheathed away under the metal.

When her words spilled from her mouth, they were strictly in Aqrui'bik but as she spoke, Kaleb translated for the rest of the group. " I am the High Priest of Amun-Ra and revered Oracle of Opalle. I have prophesied your coming but I fear for the people of Joya. Come, please, come with me to the Temple of Khonsu where we can speak freely away from this sacred place of offering and prayer."

The minute the Mindbender's voice had faded, Evergreen's thoughts broadcasted to them all. Don't you think you should have thought about that before you had us climb the mountain of steps? Now I have to climb down the mountain of steps and my feet are already killing me.

This did not help the very serious tone of the room as Bickslow's quiet chuckles sounded from beside the grumpy brunette.

"I apologize, but I have I done something funny?" The genuine tone of cold inquiry was not harsh, just clinical.

After both Laxus and Lucy sent the Seith a glare, the smaller and kinder of the blondes stepped forward to offer her apologies and walk next to the priest as they made their way back down the steps and through a massive, canopied garden full of lush life. "No, we should apologize for the outburst in a holy place, you've done nothing out of the ordinary, but I am curious as to why the highest level of religious authority is wanting to meet with us."

"I will speak of it once we are under Khonsu's protective gaze. Tell me how much of the land you have seen on your journey. I've never left the palace and I want to hear of the outer clans."

Kaleb's voice immediately cut off her response. I can't get anything from her save the steady flow of prayer and questions she has for you. All about the bordering cities and towns.

Trying to keep the questions directed away from them as much as possible, Lucy asked in ernest, "You've never been out of the palace? Not even to the streets of Opalle?"

"My mother was the Oracle before me and her mother before her. I was born in the walls of the palace, I was raised in the temples and I will die in the temples, that is the fate of an Oracle and High Priest to the Gods. I have been shown favor by Amun through a connection with his son, Khonsu by being born under the light of a golden crescent moon. Before the last High Priest of Amun's death, I was High Priest to Khonsu. I chose to keep my quarters here instead of taking the room set aside in the Royal Wing or I would never feel the moon or sun's touch again."

Lucy listened to her words and watched the way this woman moved with grace and poise, even a very quiet respectable confidence despite the heavy metal headpiece she wore and layers of cotton and jewelry and the fact that she couldn't see anything. The Celestial mage had been discreetly staring at the seam cutting across her cheeks and it was molded as if to purposefully keep her in the dark, a tight seal that just made the blonde more curious. In her youth, the religious aspects of Joya had always fascinated her but they were rather hard to get information on since the priests rarely left the temples they were born into and what limited books they had, not a one of them mentioned anything about headpieces like this.

The Temple of Khonsu, God of the Moon, was simple in design. A circular archway of pillars stood proud around the center statue of the God himself. The structure was surrounded by a clear mote of water connecting to the other pools with Canas like the rest of the palace, the glass tiles beneath a deep blue to reflect the stars beauty back to them on clear nights and there was only a roof to hinder the view where the archways connected to each other in a narrow halo to walk in and the minute they stepped foot onto the clean stone of the Temple floor, their guide's head snapped towards the unsuspecting but ever-ready Lunar slayer, her voice a distinct low coo almost as the eyes of gilded falcon of her headpiece pierced straight through him, "Son of the Lunar Dragon and blessed friend to the moon, you bring honor to the Defender through your steady devotion and noble use of the gifts he has given you and he grants you this wisdom," as if the situation could get any weirder, her low cooing switched to an ominous layering of voices, both female and male, that lilted in creepy, horror story kind of ways, "Any child of the moon is a child of mine and though days are long and nights cold, the Embracer has not forgotten you."

Bickslow, Kaleb and Lucy instantly moved to the blinking raven-haired Boscan in a move strictly stemming from the need to protect the built man by means of human wall as Freed, Evergreen and Laxus stared at the High Priest at varying levels of incredulity that went unseen by the woman and were totally ineffectual.

Being the sweet-natured man he was and after getting an oddly soothing feeling wash over him at her words, he stepped forward to thank her, his silky voice it's usual drawl, "My name is Cristoff-"

Before he could even finish, the woman was snapping her hand out run her fingers over the pink of Lucy's guild mark, her voice back to the clinical coldness from before, "So you have an Oracle for yourselves, tell me of this Oracle from across the world. Which of your gods favor her?"

Narrowing her honeyed eyes half in panic as they darted from where she and the priests' hands were now connecting and the lifeless eyes of her falcon friend on her head, she stumbled through a response she hoped made sense to the foreign girl. "Well I guess if you want to call Cana an Oracle, you could but definitely not to her face. It'll go straight to her head and uh, no gods that we...know of? Maybe the Dionysus?"

Nodding her head in an almost comical fashion on accounts of the highly valued and key piece of religious regalia currently bobbing along, the priest continued her inquiry. "This 'Cana', she's been trying to read your future but hasn't been able to, correct?"

Lucy gave a nod in response before realizing about a minute too late that that form of physical communication probably wouldn't work well with masky mcBlind, the thought earning her a crooked smirk from the Mindbender before reaffirming her actions in more verbal means.

The Oracle released her hand only to pause for a few seconds, her head just slightly cocked to the side, and continue their trek through a few small homes until a group of children ranging from toddlers to teens spotted them. The oldest boy looked to be around 17 as his eyes widened and his voice bellowed across the grassy courtyard, "Siwa! Siwa, you're back. Djau said you were summoned to Amun's Temple and we feared the worst."

Though she seemed completely unfazed by it, the children were circling around her, pulling on her robes and trying to get the woman they could only assume was named Siwa to pick them up as she spoke to the young man, "No need to fear the worst, Kyky, the King would have trouble keeping me from my duties as a priestess of the Moon God. I'll be sure to visit before it's time to leave the temple. In the meantime, Djau has forgotten to clear the leaves from the pools, would you and the children be willing to do it for me?"

At her simple words, the younger children squealed with delight before those that had shoes tore them off and made their way to the water to go above-the-knee deep into the clear water which sent the appointed male, Kyky, into a panicked fit after them, "Do not put your feel in the reflecting pool!- Seriously, Nanu? Please don't take off your robes!," before giving the priest an embarrassed look that held more than just friendly feelings and traipsing after the gaggle of giggling children on a mission to see who could collect the most wet and sticky vegetation to throw at their captor.

Even through all that, Siwa made no other moves and spoke no other words in such a way that had Lucy almost jealous at the stoic regality she held while somehow simultaneously earning the affection of every soul in that group. Surprising the buxom woman with her sudden turn towards her and closeness at which their faces now were out of nowhere, the peak of the falcon's beak just shy of her own nose in a way that had the blonde nervous with the glint from the torches shining off the piercing tip, Siwa whispered hurriedly, "We have much to talk about blessed Champion of Nut, come. Follow me."

So many questions were running through too many heads at once and Kaleb, needing it to stop in order to get a better read on Siwa and to function properly, moved from his place in front of Cristoff to address the mystery priest, "I agree wholeheartedly. The prying eyes of the palace are ever watchful."

Which is how they found themselves in a moderately sized home, seated on plush cushions completely floored by how their new friend kept that ridiculously large metal headpiece on without complaint and without the thing budging. Bickslow's voice was a quiet tease in the back of everyone's mind, I know how much you like your shiny sparklies, big bro. Think we should get you one of those to wear back home? Might give you quite the headache though.

Kaleb pinched the bridge of his nose at the horrible pun. You're giving me a headache, bro.

Priestess Mystery has no secrets as far as I can tell. No papers anywhere, no stone tablets full of teeny carved cartoons depicting devious plots, no dirty laundry, nothing. This chick lives like a monk. Vander's words were like a whisper of smoke just before the woman of the hour spoke up from where she had knelt down on a thin mat after asking for a pitcher of wine and some light dishes from the handmaid posted at her door.

Freed, having gotten up at the silent request of the Lightning slayer, started walking the perimeter of the room setting runes to make sure no one outside their ears would hear what was being said.

"What do you know of the relations between Joya and Stella?"

Having known the history of the country, Lucy knew that the two countries had a long history of violence originating from Stella's almost victory over the Joyan people over a century ago, all because of the abundant supplies of precious metals and jewels found within the mountainous borders. Through what little she picked up between Arman, Kaleb and Farron over dinner one night, Stella had been mobilizing their armies along the northwest borders of Joya in such masses that even the officials of Bosco were starting to take notice but if you speak with representatives from either side, there is no conflict and the Dragako Treaty was still a shining symbol of peace in effect between the two 'peaceful' neighbors, but none of that explained why they were here now. That did not make her feel better to put the two together. "I know there is more than meets the eye and the fact that you're bringing it up makes me wonder just what Cris and I are doing here."

"The King has been exclusively holding council with only one of his High Priests and it is not I, though I am the bridge between Gods and most trusted advisor to the King, he decides to confer with Anhur's High Priest. The War God rarely looks kindly and favors a king with peace at the root of his heart and this disturbs me. The Slayer of Enemies has been slipping poison directly into the heart of my people by way of starting a war to destroy what we have managed to achieve here. I was close with his daughter before Illium restricted her and her mother to the Royal Wing and as the High Priest of Khonsu, often sat in on meetings of diplomacy and the King was a calculating, ingenious man with his people's well-being at his heart. In the passed year and a half, we've cut our trade in half as if we needed to hoard our exports and more than just Stella grows tired of his games. Anhur is a creative god, a patient god but he's become unsettled and unhappy if he's encouraging open war for no reason. Before the King became mad from this, he came to me here at the temple alone to ask about the God of the Moon and the Goddess of the Sky. He asked about them as a child asks a parent for a bedtime story, in hopes of being sent into the night with dreams written in the stars instead of the confusion that permeated the air from him so I told him the tales of Nut, She Who Holds A Thousand Souls and Coverer of Sky, and Khonsu, The Defender and Pathfinder, before he left this room and I haven't seen him since. That night I had a vision, the Moon's descendent and the Heavenly Champion would come and be the key to unraveling the chaos and madness, though I am disturbed to hear you have both been summoned by the King himself."

Staring at Siwa openly, Lucy had the absent thought that it was a good thing the High Priest didn't move an unnecessary muscle throughout that whole overwhelming information dump to distract them from the insane overwhelming information dump before clearing her throat and looking at each of her team's eyes to see how they were standing up to it. Half of them seemed to be taking it well, nodding along, absorbing the information while the other half, the Fairy Tail half, was gaping like she was which made her feel a thousand times better about her own slower processes before grabbing her Seith's hand and pulling him towards her to sit behind her, the feel of his chest, his steady heartbeat and the inhale exhale of his lungs soothing her enough to hear the soft footfalls that indicated their snacks had arrived.

Clearing her throat in an obvious move to draw attention, she started cheerily talking about the beauty of the temple from the bottom of her heart, earning very confused looks from her brunette girlfriend, the Rune mage and Bickslow, "I've always had a fascination with Joyan religion and being here, in the temples in person, it's almost overwhelming. I knew they favor saturated colors and opulence when then can, but I almost prefer this simplicity to that."

Also having heard the handmaid approach, Cristoff added off-hand from the last time he and Farron had come here. "If it's the pools you like, Princess, they aren't for Khonsu, or at least, they mostly aren't. The Temple of Nut shares the courtyard and the main reflecting pool is huge in her honor."

As if the prospect of seeing this huge pool dedicated to her night sky was the sole reason for coming to Joya, Lucy turned to look up into her mate's deep wine eyes with hers the size of saucers, "Can we please please please see the other temple before we go to sleep? Please please please?"

"Blondie, I don't really think that's a great idea right now," was Laxus' unmoved response despite her machinations being directed at her mohawked blunette as their wine and food came through the open door, the woman's eyes lingering far too long on the oblivious Celestial slayer before leaving the impressive tray on the low table they were gathered around.

"Would there be anything else I can do for you, Akh-Sayidda Siwa?"

With little more than a wave of her hand, the Joyan priest dismissed the woman before deftly pouring her guests wine and waiting for one of them to speak.

Bickslow had had enough sidestepping the issue and frankly, was disappointed in Laxus for not putting an end to this roundabout way of doing things sooner. So with a flurry of swift motion, his wine was gone and he was hugging Lucy closer to his body while pointing uselessly at the still strange woman in his books, "So what you're trying to tell me is that my girlfriend and my brother are apart of some Joyan prophecy to save your king of your country from the clutches of your God of War and what, the rest of us are supporting cast?"

"Essentially. You're very concise for a man known to prattle." The oddly astute words from Siwa had Lucy trying to suppress her inappropriate giggles as the woman neatly pulled the excessive length of cotton hanging over her shoulders out of the way of her hands so she could eat without them getting in her way to reveal a body similar to Levy's, short in stature, smaller chest but fuller hips that was covered almost entirely in barely seen hieroglyphics, the ink only a few shades darker than her own skin with some gold and silver ones to stand out stark against the canvas though the simple cross-halter top and Pectoral, another piece of heavy mostly metal jewelry that set over her shoulders and ended under her collarbone to keep her robes in place and depict her status as the Oracle and having been High Priest of Khonsu as well as the current High Priest of Amun-Ra and High Priestess of Joya, kept her neck and shoulders mostly hidden from view.

Now slightly upset at the accurate dig from a stranger and his woman's near silent laughter at his expense, the Seith opened his magic to get a read on this woman's soul. What he was not expecting to see was the actual scenes of a fairly alarming fight between Lucy and Cristoff and a man he could only assume for sure wasn't the withered King of Joya before pulling back and resting his visored forehead on his tiny mate's crown of golden hair and taking a deep bracing breath.

These scenes flashed through all their heads thanks to Kaleb and his link to set off a very visible but mostly silent wave of reactions. Kaleb's hard pale grey eyes immediately snapped to Bickslow in an accusing manner for using his magic here while Laxus immediately snapped his steely eyes to his sister who snapped her worried eyes to Cristoff who was staring right back at her with his own wide eyes trying to process what they saw. Freed managed to stay unperturbed by the disturbing situation while Evergreen let out just the barest squeak of gasp which was impressive considering the two mages were both in Dragon Force and still looked pretty beat up in the vision. Enough that their clothes were in rags and blood ran in unstaunched, dirty streams from the cuts that littered their bodies as they braced themselves for another attack. The vision was silent but they knew there was a barrier between the rest of them and the fight to keep every single one of them at bay. Kaleb was fighting to keep upright himself as he pulled Laxus' body back, the Lightning dragon's hands a bloody pulp from hammering against the invisible wall in a rage that had lightning arcing from his body in wild, unpredictable flashes and his own Dragon Force taking over, Freed focused on trying to find a way through the only thing keeping them helpless and separated while Evergreen sobbed from where she crumpled after watching her closest girlfriend slam into the barrier just above her head like a ragdoll, Vander having gone into a rage moment they realized only the Lunar and Celestial slayers were getting through was clutching the material that covered his eyes, rocking back and forth at what the Pradesh boys knew meant he was fighting the shades in the Void all the while Bickslow tried to balance the oppressive instinctual pull to watch his soulmate and the absolute need to focus all his energy on his little brother's soul to keep him calm and to keep him safe. Just as they could hear Lucy's voice gain in strength as the only sound, the vision blacked out.

Siwa's voice was tinged with somber sadness as she lowered her head out of respect for the mages before her, "You've only seen a small piece, the rest- the rest isn't important but what you're seeing is Anhur himself. You're seeing the reason a Champion was chosen."

Finding her voice after what felt like ages, Lucy whispered softly, as if saying too loud would make the answer real, "Then how did the King know to ask for Cris and I?"

The Oracle's response was much like the rest, cold and unfeeling, "The only reasoning I could see, would be if Anhur himself already had his own plans set in motion for you as well. Convenient in unconventional means to get you here and have you hear the truth from me."

"Not exactly the kind of thing you really want to hear," came from where the Lunar slayer's frame had hunched forward just slightly, not looking at anyone or anything in particular.

Which Lucy responded with in a gross regurgitation of her own inner annoyance at finding herself in damsel situations, "Doesn't feel good to be the key evil thing in nefarius plots now does it?"

"Not the time," was Laxus' very tight jawed snap of a response that rubbed something in her dragon the wrong way as she almost lunged for the hulking slayer before her mate tightened his hold around her waist and kept her from following through with the unsolicited reaction.

Evergreen chimed in from the other side of Laxus, "Is anyone going to talk about the fact that she's saying they're gonna fight a frickin' god?"

"God of War, too. Like the worst possible god you could have to fight."

Lucy, while happy to see Vander and know for sure he was safe, did not appreciate his brand of humor at the moment and then tried to turn her agitation on the lounging Shadowquip on the pillow the blunette had been plucked from by her just earlier. This lunge was also caught by the Seith and this time his babies moved to surround the now sulking blonde to keep her from moving, Muu nestling into her chest to pull a smile from her lips to keep her from brooding.

The oldest Pradesh's voice rang out clear and strong, "And what do we do about it? We can't just wait around for this to come to fruition and hope for the best. I will leave this country before waiting idly by in the nest of my enemy where my family, my baby brothers, aren't even remotely safe."

The snap of her voice drew everyone onto silence, not from the volume or wild show of anger but from the sheer command she held filling the gaps of her usual tone, "This is the home of your friend who has not been spending her precious time toiling away with hope as my only plan to stop this. The prophecies I see don't come with a time limit and I'm here living the repercussions of a man desperate and mad with poison tainting his soul. If it's affecting Opalle so greatly, how are the smaller cities doing? I am afraid for my country, a country of resilient, hard-working people that didn't ask for war or the plague of strife it brings. No war has its victory without victim and I refuse to let the people become that."

Right as she finished, one of the children from earlier came barreling into the room before realizing their mistake and running back out of the room to wait at the doorway. He was breathless from all the moving but kept his tone respectful, "Akh-Siwa, we were wondering if you- maybe if you wanted to come out and watch the shooting stars with us. You can bring your friends along too if they want to see too!"

After a pause, the priest turned her head and smiled over at the boy before holding her right hand out as if to get help up which the young boy, maybe ten or eleven, crossed through their cushions with mumbled 'pardons' to take her hand and help the priest up, not letting go of her hand as the pair made their way towards the doorway. "It seems the Gods are smiling on us tonight. Come, let us celebrate the beauty of the night sky and new friends. We will meet here for breakfast in the morning to discuss your plans while you're here in Joya."

Waiting until the rest of the group had steadily if a little warily got up to follow, Bickslow and Lucy hung back for just a split second where the blunette ducked his head to playfully whisper over the shell of his mate's ear, "Do you think Helmet Head would notice if we took a sidequest to go to the Temple of Nut?"

Smiling coyly back over her shoulder at him for a flash of an instant before she answered with a deadpanned, totally sarcastic serious voice, "If we were really really quiet."

Giving her a blank stare for a fraction of a moment before bursting into a mini fit of laughter, he gathered himself enough to say, "You were supposed to say 'why, Bixy-boo' so that I could say 'because I'd sure like to worship Nut all through the heavenly curves of your body', not ruin my bad joke with your shitty pun."

Looking over at him with mock offense, she pouted a little before crossing her arms over her chest, "I rather liked my shitty pun, thank you very much," before smirking and grabbing her irresistibly handsome mate and pulling him down into a heated and wildly inappropriate display of suppressed sexual tension that had Vander clearing his throat from where he was waiting in the shadows for the couple.

"I think you're both dorks who deserve each other bunches and loads, now get to stepping and keep your debauchery to a minimum," pausing his words to push off the wall and walk with the two practically conjoined mages to gesture to where Kaleb and Cristoff were getting hounded by children to pick them and spin them around, "Mom says we have to keep it kid-friendly."

Calling from where two boys were crawling up his back and three little girls were hanging off his arms, the oldest Pradesh clarifies, "I said that specifically to you Vander."

"Why? I'm not a part of the repressed sexual tension club." The Shadowquip's words were casual but the look he shared with his older brother told the Mindbender more than his thoughts ever could and as if on cue, the Lightning dragon himself, proclaimer of hatred for children and the frequency for which they operate on, came up behind the oldest Pradesh to remove the two boys only for the girls to drop and attack in a genius bit of strategy. The whole scene pulling knowing, shit-eating grins from Vander and Lucy as the Guildmaster of the White Sea rolled his eyes and sighed.

The sun had fully set now and cool night air was moving in, sending a wave of recognition through her body that marked the lighting of her stars only this time instead of the wave being subtle and barely noticeable, it hit the Celestial mage like a shot of adrenaline to her heart. Writing the feeling off due to the cloudless night and her gorgeous mates presence, the little blonde gave the grinning Seith a chaste kiss before yelling over the laughter and chattering and barrelling full force into the Lightning Dragon Slayer, "Unless you want squished by a giant, I'd get out of the way before I connect." Sending kids running in every direction, their laughter loud and steady as Lucy made connection with her brother, cocky smirk firmly in place on his handsome, scarred face.

Before the scene could fully play out, Vander leaned in to talk to his brother, "Ten thousand says they end up in the pool."

Rolling his eyes beneath his visor, Bickslow answered smoothly as he watched his best friend and his girlfriend wrestle each other like he and his brothers wrestled as kids, "This whole place is surrounded by one big pool, you fucking cheat. I'd be more surprised if they didn't end up in the pool."

Just then, Laxus' voice came from where Lucy had somehow managed to wrestle herself around to put him in an arm bar before he flipped them both over so he was just laying all his body weight across her tiny frame, "Must suck to be so powerful and yet so tiny."

Suddenly, Lucy felt a horrible itchy sensation wash over her skin, like every blade of grass underneath her was wiggling and the places where the Lightning slayer's skin touched her own burned so much she wanted to twist to get away from it.

At the same moment, Bickslow became acutely aware of the things happening to the love of his life. An urgent ache started deep in his bones to be near her and like a man with a one-track mind, he started to cross the short distance between them only to have Evergreen and Cristoff recruit he and his babies to help the kids already playing with his little totems and them grab blankets to spread out on. This meant he missed the impressive and almost unreal display of the Celestial dragon's strength by kicking Laxus from her in one swift motion before stalking off to the other temple, her nerves in shambles and Vander hot on her tail.

She knew he was there. She knew where everyone was due to the unbearable sensitivity she was having to everything. The sounds and noises were too sharp, the nerves of her body working overtime just to be overstimulated by the cool breeze, smells hitting her brain too hard and it made her thankful it was pretty dark or she had a feeling bright colors would offend her senses next. "Don't touch me, Van. I don't know what's happening but- just please, don't touch me and I'll promise to stop."

The Shadow mage heard the confusion and fear in her voice and stopped a few feet short of her frame as she wrapped her arms around herself and let out a heated sigh of relief at the simple contact. "Don't worry, Starshine, I won't do anything you don't want me to."

She let out a few choked laughs before turning, a wide smile on her still strained face, "I bet you say that to all the girls, Red."

Waiting to see if she was going to sit or go, he asked thoughtfully, "What's the matter, soul-sister?"

"That's a loaded question at the moment," was her honest answer as she made her way to the edge of the Temple of the Night Sky's reflecting pool to sit and try to pull her mind off the slow-burning inferno building right under the surface of her skin. "Right now though? I feel like I'm on fire and everything is itchy and fucking hell, I just want to mount your brother. Like now. Right now." She ran her hands through her hair before staring at the weathered palms of her hand, noticing the new callused patches and faint scars from this insane trip.

Running his hands through his hair in a move that meant he was readjusting his mindset, the leather-clad mage tried to keep it light for the Celestial beauty. "At least you have good taste, sugar."

"Hah! What good it's doing me now." She scoffed out before falling backwards into the grass and regretting it instantly as each edge of each blade of grass scraped across her burning flesh.

"You need to get out of here for a little while? Clear your head from all the junk." The question was caring and she couldn't help but smile at the concern in his voice.

Her response was as easy as she could manage while trying not to writhe and rub to ease the aching over her body. "I don't think I want to run away from this one but thanks. I think a good night's rest and a solid wish will get me through."

The pair just sat next to each other before Lucy took a bracing breath and gave his hand a squeeze, "Let's go back to the others and enjoy the meteor shower, okay?" Which was answered by a devilishly charming smirk before they made the short walk back to where the kids had made their own little mini town with makeshift tents made from sheets and her eyes locked with Bickslow's, even through the thin slits of his visor and it made the Seith suddenly very warm and very horny.

The newest Dragon Slayer needed little more than his bodies natural reaction to the rolling waves of intoxicating heady scent pouring from the little blonde but before she could act on it, Loke of all her spirits cut off her path. "Princess, I don't think Draco did a very good job explaining all the quirks that might affect you now, like say the effects of a meteor shower in the middle of a beautiful clear night sky for example. Draco goes nuts when there's one and what I'm hoping was a lapse in thought and not a blatant and reckless attempt to have you mated and pregnant before the night is over like the ridiculous man that he is. I swear, he's always had this thing with children and grandchildren. I just don't get it."

None of her well-to-do ginger spirit's words hit home. As the first of the 'stars' started falling, a wave of wonder-filled noises came from the children scattered across the grass and Lucy's libido kicked into overdrive, the biology behind the temporary change akin to a feline in heat and her hypersensitive senses could pick out the delicious scent of her Seith above everything else and it made her hungry to taste him.

"Lucy please, if you don't stop I'm going to have to do something about this and you won't like it. You can't go through a mating in the middle of a foreign country in a star-shower induced heat that could be easily handled away from here. Draco has a special pocket of the Spirit Realm set aside for...reasons...that I can take you where time won't pass like it does usually back home."

Again his words were futile as the blonde started getting more and more irritated not by his words but because the Lion Spirit kept getting in the way of her trying to sidestep the Lion to get to Bickslow.

The instant the low growl came from deep in her chest, Cristoff and Vander were at her sides to try and keep her from doing anything she'd regret while Loke had to then turn to instead of keeping his mage from her mate to keeping the blunette from Lucy in a battle that did little but exacerbate the circumstances.

Cristoff's voice was soothing and even in her ear as he gently took hold of one of her arms, "Little sister, I need you to focus on me. I need you to focus only on me and the sound of my voice. Can you look at me, princess?"

She couldn't. The little Fairy knew she should, if she looked into Cristoff's beautiful eyes she could sleep until this was all over but her eyes were locked on Bickslow like a hawk. Everything was centered on the blunette currently using his babies to badder her poor Zodiac into releasing him before his eyes flared in a momentary flash of his magic before Vander's body went unnaturally stiff and he released her other arm.

This action drew the attention of the Mindbender who knew Bickslow's control and judgement were better than using his magic so carelessly before taking in the wild, uncharacteristically aggressive actions coming from his brother and the mewling kind of desperation pouring from the Celestial mage and put the pieces together; like her draconian-sibling, she seems to go into a kind of 'drunk' due to the nature of their dragons but because Lucy is female, it acts more along the lines of a cat's heat which meant this was going to be rough.

Before Laxus could try and throw his muscle into the struggle between lovers, Kaleb put a hand to his jaw, gripping his face only hard enough to keep his steel-blue eyes looking into his and not on the madness behind them, "We need to get these kids out of here and we need to do it with little alarm. The Priest is already gathering up the ones still awake but I need your help with the rest of them."

Leaning into the touch without realizing, he gave a nod of his head before getting up to scoop the girls from earlier into his arms while Ever and Freed each took a child and Kaleb tried to calm one of the younger ones down as the scuffles turned more heated.

"Loke, if you don't get my sister out of here, I will ask for reprament by means of your immortal ass." As if Laxus' words were really necessary motivation for the ginger spirit currently trying to ignore the constant flashes of pain where one of the babies was smashing into his ankle repeatedly, the cat shot a sarcastic thumb in the air.

"Let me...GO! I won't do anything bad I promise, just let me go. Just let me feel him. I just want to feel his heartbeat, please. Just let me feel his heartbeat. Cristoff please, it hurts." In a bizarre twist of events, it was now Cristoff trying to fight off his dragon's urge to let his sibling go so she can be with her mate and her weird irresistible puppy dog eyes that shined gold under the light of the night sky were wearing down his resolve and confusing him and in that split moment of weakness, Lucy ripped herself from his grip, force-gate closed Loke and threw herself into Bickslow's waiting arms.

The instant she made contact, she was nuzzling and rubbing under his chin and into his neck, loud, rumbling purrs vibrating through her body as his arms wrapped around her, one hand knotting the fabric of her shirt in his hand and the other tangling in her hair to hold her closer because for the first time in what felt like a very long time, he felt the pain in his chest ease.

Unfortunately, that was where the insatiable need to be inside the purring, whimpering woman on top of him took residence instead and no long holding his little brother hostage with his magic, Vander scooped Lucy up and disappeared with a look on his face that said all the horrible things he was going to do the Seith mage as payback.

When the pair landed on their own two feet in the center of the Pradesh's living in the middle of night, Lucy had no idea what was going on and without hesitation started working at trying to get her hands around the Shadowquip only to have Loke pop out and 'take it from there'. This apparently consisted of taking her to a part of the Spirit Realm where time moved the same as on Earthland except when the other occupant of said pocket in Spirit Realm became aware of a certain Celestial Wizards presence, the bulked up spitting image of a young Arman Pradesh came swooping down yes, swooping on account of the gorgeous and positively breath catching set of black wings extending from his very broad, very muscular shoulders. By this point, whatever was happening to her had taken full affect because Loke was very suddenly aware of the way her thighs were rubbing together and her vice grip on his arm loosened to close the distance between her and her purple-eyed angel.

Loke's voice was cautious as Draco appeared between the two mages, "Zen, I need you to get out of here buddy."

"And I'd like you to fuck off, but I don't see that happening anytime soon. Who's the girl?" Zen's voice was hard but not wholly unkind as his wings furled away and he crossed his arms over his chest, only making his chiseled muscles more pronounced as he paced from behind Draco like a caged animal prowling the perimeter.

Trying to grab the ditzy star shower-powered blonde without setting off either of the very powerful men in front of him, the Leader of the Zodiac pressed forward. "I'd like you to meet my mage and very recognized daughter to the Spirit King himself, Lucy Heartfilia-"

Before he could finish that very vital sentence with "your middle brother's mate, second youngest brother's draconian-sibling through Draco and youngest brother's one-of-a-kind gate-twin" the gruff mahogany-haired Pradesh gave a winning smile that pulled little giggles from Lucy and said, "So she's the Celestial Princess and the Celestial Dragon Slayer. A very powerful match for me."

At the mention of the word 'princess' the little blonde's first thought was of her Prince Charming back in wherever he was that wasn't here with her and fat tears welled up in her eyes before whimpering out, "I don't have my Prince Charming. He always finds me when I'm alone." Looking up through her watery eyes, she tilted her head at the Lunar slayer's frame and long dark hair before the tears fell and Zen was standing there beside Draco. When she did a mental double-take and realized Draco was here, her pupils went wide before all but tackling the serious man and rubbing her cheek on the smooth material of his expensive suit. "Papa! You should have told me you would be here...I wouldn't have fought so hard." Pausing a moment before adding, "Maybe."

The incredibly old spirit just stood there with his arms out at his sides like a bird frozen in flight for a minute before Loke gave a huff and made hugging motions from where he was now standing with his arms over his chest and an annoyed look in his eyes.

Flipping the Lion spirit off first, he wrapped his arms around his still beaming child taking her best shot at crushing his spine in two. His voice deep and soothing to the blonde in ways that made her feel like she was floating on air, "I would have come sooner had the reflecting pool been full before your little impromptu meeting with Zen. Another Pradesh that you won't remember once you leave here."

Looking up into her dragon's eyes, she tilted her head curiously, earning a groan from the sex on sticks man beside them, "I won't remember?"

He gave a sad shake of his head.

"At all?" Her voice began to get watery.

He gave another hesitant shake of his head.

Giant honeyed orbs immediately turned to meet the faintly glimmering eyes of the missing Pradesh before she burst into all out tears and wrapped him up in a hug to make sure he knew someone cared and knew of him now at least before realizing her mistake. This man felt very good. He felt like Cristoff and Laxus and Kaleb, even reminded her of Farron by way of genetics. So letting out another of her deep throaty purrs, she cleared her throat before asking quietly, tucking a too wild curl back from her loose tangled hair, "Will you...will you hold me? You feel like home and I really miss home."

Zen was battling the fight of his life. Here he was with the pinnacle of Celestial mages, the absolute perfect partner and mate for him for the rest of their lives together like putty in his very capable hands right now in this moment which would make not only himself but her own magic stronger while carrying on the Archangel magic that without a doubt cannot end with him or he could do what the cat said and leave. Looking to his mentor and second father-figure for advice, the dragon gave a him only a sly smile in response before slinging an arm around Loke's shoulder and walking the panicking man to the reflecting pool to see how the rest of the gang was doing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~A few things: First, I REQUIRE FEEDBACK BECAUSE HELLO HELLA CLIFFHANGER but that's because I am torn. I am torn into shredded halves. One half wants to punch me in the face for the move I just pulled and the other part is like BUT THERE ARE SO MANY WONDERFUL DRAMATIC THINGS TO DO WITH THIS, like seriously, if y'all were willing to step out of the comfort zone *shoots with finger guns* I'd make it worth your while.
> 
> Second, I'm sure you've picked up the wholly Egyptian themes here and I tried to do my best with keeping the language and country believable while not making this a bitch to read but because I have a habit of assuming you've done as much research as I have, y'all can ask me WHATEVER you want/need to in order for you to get maximum enjoyment from the story. Seriously ask me anything and I'll do my best to answer
> 
> Lastly: and most importantly, you dirty souls are the best and I love you. Thanks for being supportive, motivational, fantastic humans.
> 
> Please let me know what you guys thought and just how open-minded y'all can be in the comments, I don't mind!~


	16. Step Sixteen: Just Get Them Stable

The moment Lucy was gone from on top of him, the shock of going from a fevered, hormone and instinct induced sex craze to utterly normal and regular body functions sent the Seith Mage into a seizure from the violent way they had to be pulled apart before Cristoff was shaking the remnants of the Lucy equivalent to his being moon drunk off to get to his brother and help get him stable and make sure he's okay. His touch was gentle and soothing like the nature of his magic as Bickslow's eyes rolled back into his head and his body went limp from his younger brother forcing him to sleep soundly and the stress on his body finally hitting a breaking point.

Siwa, Laxus and Kaleb came back into the courtyard to try to help anyway they could, the Lightning Slayer running into the courtyard to find any trace of his sister gone and his best friend unconscious. His first thought being that they had no link to Lucy at all. His dragon was tearing him apart from the inside out at this point, clawing away at his rational thought that manifested into physical pain as he forced his palms into his eyelids to try and ease the uncontrollable feeling and his body hunched over from the intensity of it, a harrowing growl of a roar resonated off the stone walls of the palace from a place deep within his soul. He felt a hand on his shoulder and moved to knock it from his body with a snarl but couldn't the instant Kaleb's silky voice started speaking low in his ear, "Lucy is alright, Laxus. Vander took her to Bosco so Loke could take her to the Spirit Realm where she will be safe until tomorrow when she's back to being herself. It's only until tomorrow afternoon then you'll have her back. We can talk to Cris and Van when we get settled but I need you right now. I need you to be the Guildmaster of Fairy Tail, I need you to think through what I'm saying and I need you to get our family back home safely. I can't do this without you."

The Mindbender was being especially cautious in his handling of the infamously temperamental dragon because at any moment, he had a very real possibility of snapping completely. The vision, the King, the priests, the gods he could handle on his own but the fact that this was all centered around Lucy, his little sister and only real family he's had stick with him through everything, the woman who pulled him out of his shell and the Light of their guild was literally plucked from the face of Earthland and taken somewhere else that they couldn't go; that he couldn't follow.

The Lightning dragon was trying to focus, he was hearing Kaleb's words and he believed them. As if realizing for the first time just how much he could trust the Pradesh, how much he's always trusted him, Laxus turned his head to look into the pale lavender eyes that without a doubt just saved him from himself and probably most of Opalle from himself. The connection, the spark at least, was too much for him to ignore so for now, he would accept it and lean on Kaleb so they could get every single one of them out of this insane country and deal with whatever came from it later. In a rare show of physical affection, the Lightning Mage covered Kaleb's hand with his own before gruffing out, "I've got your back if you've got mine."

Letting out a few tight chuckles, the Mindbender squeezed his shoulder and uttered jokingly, "I've had your back for awhile, you static idiot," before the pair made their way to where Siwa and Cris were working in perfect tandem around the other to get Bickslow healthy and stable. With his voice back to the edged tone the situation very much called for, the oldest Pradesh knelt down at the blunette's head to see if he was dreaming but all his little brother's thoughts were focused solely on Lucy. If it weren't for the fact that they're brothers, he might have felt intrusive watching the montage of little moments he shared with the unique Celestial Mage but they were wholesome and honest, something that broke his heart to keep separated. "Will he be okay?"

Much to everyone presents surprise, it was the High Priest that spoke hotly, "He most certainly will not be okay. Physically, he's in prime health but whatever you're doing to keep fated soulmates apart, you need to stop immediately or moments like this will only get harder, more dangerous for both of them."

Skeptical of just about every inch of Joya and her people, Laxus narrowed his eyes to the unseeing woman. "You're the one with the prophecy keeping them apart, lady, not us."

"The only thing that my prophecy has done was give you an ally in a war you were already a part of long before you stepped foot into Joya. The moment my King requested the Heavenly Champion and she accepted you were all drawn into this. I am here as a tool, as a means to help you from the Gods themselves and you have the confidence, the audacity to blame me. Would you like to know what happens to those who belittle the gifts from the Gods?"

Without waiting for the man to answer, her hands were free of her robes and an eerie aura fell over the courtyard as the writings on her skin started to shimmer. The ominous layering of voices came through where her clinical detached voice naturally rang from, "You carry so much, within your heart and on your shoulders when you don't have to. Such heavy burdens are meant to be shared with those you trust. You have been given a great blessing, someone to walk beside you as your equal and you deny them. You deny yourself and you deny those who have shown you favor and this displeases them. Be wary of the consequences of your actions." The Oracle had no control over what she saw and while she was hoping for something a little more dramatic, the stern scolding would do.

Cristoff and Kaleb were ignoring the exchange as much as anyone could while less than two feet away while Freed and Evergreen hovered, the former in a reserved state of panic and the latter about to break down into hysterics, her voice reflecting her frazzled, jerky motions, "This is entirely too much. Entirely too much for me, for you, for Lucy and Bix! Look at him, Laxus! This is serious and we have not been cautious enough. Gods! We are involved in gods. With them. We are going to fight a god- No, Lucy and Cristoff are going to fight a god while the rest of us twiddle our thumbs and hope for the best. Well I'm sorry High Priest of Amun-Ra but I do not play helpless victim and neither does Fairy Tail," turning her outburst to be directed at the Dragon Slayer on the verge of a psychotic break, "which means you, Laxus Dreyar need to get off your ass, pick up Bixy and his babies and get us somewhere safe to wait for Lu and Vander to get back and we can come up with something better than our falcon headed friend over here has to offer, no offense." By the end of her mini tyrade, the brunette's hands were on her hips, her chest was heaving and an impressive amount of determination lit her eyes.

Unruffled by the Fairy Mage's words, Siwa stood before speaking evenly, "She is right. You should go back to your quarters for the night, I will come for you myself tomorrow and we will do all we can to keep the prophecy from coming true. I'll do what I can to get as much information on the High Priest of Anhur as I can before then." Nodding her head in the direction of Bickslow's now peacefully sleeping face, she continued, "As far as he goes, he is safe, he is healthy and he is alive. Those three things will soon be mutually exclusive to the time spent with his soulmate the longer they put off becoming one, something you should all heed," taking special care to slow her last words down. The last thing Laxus needed was yet another warning or demand directed at him right now.

With that, she took a deep bow and left the mages to work on her own part to play.

The Lunar Slayer started gathering up wooden totems while Laxus gingerly lifted the Seith Mage as the rest of the group fell in line behind where he and Kaleb walked them back to their room, both men knowing the only way they would be sleeping was if Cristoff put the Lightning Slayer to sleep. The best move for both Laxus and Bickslow with Lucy gone.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

In a sleepy haze, Lucy cuddled further into the too-built chest and mumbled under her breath, "Why do you smell like the stars and sunshine and Draco?"

A gruff answer rumbled from beneath her cheek as a light touch ran up and down her spine, "Why do you smell like vanilla and stardust and home?"

Though the voice wasn't familiar, it made her feel safe and it made the deep ache in her chest bearable. Her voice was distant but aware, the comet showers effect putting her into a daze, "I wish I could go home. You'd like it there, I think. It's really nice and homey."

Amusement laced his accented voice as he ran his fingers soothingly through her hair, "Tell me about your home, sternchen."

Snuggling into the muscle, her voice grew airy and light as she described Magnolia and the canals, her apartment and the hills with the best stargazing but mostly she talked about the guild and her nakama, that is until she became suddenly very aware of the way her cheek was actually skin to skin with the delicious man beneath her. When her chest started aching to the point that she curled in on herself, effectively putting her in Zen's lap in the fetal position clutching at her chest completely uncaring of his torso's nakedness.

Before he really even knew what he was doing, he had his arms wrapped around her small frame, his hands rubbing circles wherever they landed in the hopes of easing her pain. He couldn't remember the last time anyone comforted him to know how to help her and he almost desperately wanted to be the one to offer her a safety net. Even though he really didn't know why. Yes, they would be the perfect match and yes, she was incredibly attractive, but this was more than just logical attraction.

When the ache became a sharp, jagged pain and her eyes started to well again, Zen made an executive decision he wasn't exactly allowed to make; the Archangel Mage and missing Pradesh boy decided the best course of action would be to take her back to wherever she belonged. Easier said than done when the only person who knew where they were going was going through flashes of searing hot just beneath her ribs to needing constant contact with him and holding onto his towering build for dear life. By the time she told him where to go and he was about to do his best to get her there, both Draco and Loke had returned in an all out verbal brawl just in time to witness the two mages disappear completely, sending the two men into total panic mode. Loke because he lost Lucy to the worst possible person she could be lost with and Draco because Zen is not supposed to leave the little pocket of perfection he had carved out for him. He'd only been out of the fighting pits in Pergrande for a few months and he wasn't ready for the world, let alone jumping into the middle of his daughters mess.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Kaleb was pacing the floor next to one of the pools when both Draco and Loke appeared before him, both obviously in distress despite the cool outer appearances. When Lucy never followed behind, his eyes narrowed knowingly at what they'd done and in efforts to keep himself from attempting to drown one of them, tightened his jaw just enough to get his emotion across as he spoke, "I have so many things to say but where do I start?" Pulling his hands behind his back and stiffening his posture enough that his sheer size dominated Loke's lithe build and the Celestial Dragon's Spirit form albeit barely, he continued, "I want to know where Lucy is right now."

Draco stepped forward, worried only for his daughter and the errant Archangel Mage he loosed on the world as he answered confidently, "I have a very strong suspicion she is on her way here now."

"A strong suspicion? I saw in your head, Draco and I'm not about to have Lucy go brother-hopping and screw up this mating just so you can get powerful grandchildren."

A scoff left the ancient dragon's lips, "Dear boy, there are two ways this works out and both end with Lucy mated to Bickslow."

Narrowing his eyes, he read between the lines that one of the options ended in the delightful blonde having two Pradesh men as mates, one due to the slice of dragon soul and they other due to a totally controllable decisions. Though he couldn't find any real fault in it and if that's what she wanted there would be no issue from him but he had a hard time believing in the few hours she's been gone, Lucy suddenly needed an additional mate.

He was about to voice these opinions when he heard the low pained growls from down the stone hall, muttering under his breath as he eyed Draco and Loke, "At least we know where they are," before heading to the doorway to see what sort of state Lucy was in physically and to meet his older brother for the first time.

The stern bass of the Celestial Dragon's voice stopped him in his tracks as Zen appeared in the open archway with the Celestial Dragon Slayer curled around his extremely built and scarred body that reflected his years as a gladiator in the fighting pits, "Kaleb, he can't be seen here. He shouldn't even be out of Spirit World yet. We're lucky there aren't any other Celestial Wizards in Joya or this would be a lot worse. I need you to keep everyone out, run interference until we can figure this out."

The Mindbender registered his words and his tone but the overwhelming joy he felt that the brother he thought dead is actually living and breathing and here was taking hold in his body. Without real thought, the hulking man with an almost identical build wrapped both the missing mages up in a bear hug, earning a very uncomfortable noise from the male and a contented little noise of approval from the female, her words were strained but Kaleb heard what she had asked.

His voice wasn't as soothing as Cristoff's but it calmed her enough to ease her grip on Zen just a hair. "Bixy is okay but you're here now. Let's get you in there and see if he wakes up."

Too tired and too drained to anything else, she gave a subtle dip of her chin before Kaleb moved to take her from the Archangel only to have his arms tighten around her and the hypnotizing purples and golds of his eyes were edged in something brutal. Understanding just what Draco meant by 'he wasn't ready', the Guildmaster just backed away and lead the pair to their Seith Mage.

The instant Lucy's eyes fell on her mates unconscious body, a low keening moan left her lips as tears welled in her eyes again. Her voice was too quiet for either Pradesh's liking, "Would you please put me down?"

With very obvious reluctance, Zen loosened his hold and set her gently on her feet. The careful action noted by both Spirits as they followed behind to close the door before Lucy's panicked eyes meet the Archangel Mage's, her hand gripping his like a lifeline as she pleaded softly, "Don't go yet. Just- don't leave."

Putting a heavy hand on her cheek, the rough pad of his thumb wiped her stray tears before answering easily, "I'm not going anywhere, sternchen."

At the use of the Pergrande pet name usually used between lovers or small children that directly translated to 'little star', both Loke and Kaleb raised a very curious brow at Zen's apparent affection for the little dragon in spite of the short amount of time they'd been together.

Taking a moment to try and reason through all the things that were happening in rapid fire, Kaleb looked deeper into his missing brother's brain, into the parts he tried to avoid only to have Zen's face twist into an almost feral snarl directed right at him. His reaction was too late and the Mindbender saw it all. He saw the kidnapping, the 'training', the fights, the blood, the deaths all by his capable and honed hands. His life has been a blood bath fuelled by a kill or be killed mentality he's had to adopt to stay alive. This man before him was rooted in raw, primal rage and his life has been driven by cruelty and abuse. Remembering a conversation with Vander back when Lucy had first become the Celestial Dragon Slayer, his little brother's mind was lighter and his smile was more genuine and that was solely due to his connection with Lucy. Even looking at Cristoff since the time the two Slayers had met had brought a new light from him. Maybe it was just the warmth she constantly exuded but Lucy just felt like home in a sense. Just like the Pradesh family home, she was always a safe place to go, full of love, understanding and forgiveness and maybe that was the real reason so many of them connected with her.

Her soft, lilting voice sounded from where she had knelt on the floor beside Bickslow, one hand lacing her fingers with his and the other tracing over the features of his face, "Bixy, I'm here and I'm so sorry. I know it's hard but I need you to wake up, I need you to be okay."

When her soft begging turned to silent tears, a very sleep-riddled Lunar Slayer had woken from the intensity of her feelings; the sorrow and the joy, her fear and in this sleep-riddled state, made his way from where he had fallen asleep on the cushions next to Laxus in to Bickslow's room to wrap himself around Lucy's shaking frame from behind, completely ignorant of everyone else in the room as he nuzzled into her hair, the foreign smell on her golden locks almost identical to Draco as his deep voice sounded from his chest, "What's the problem, Princess?"

At being completely encompassed by Cristoff, a wave of relief washed over her and she leaned back into his body, her eyes shut tight and her words a ghostly far off whisper, "I don't know what I'm doing and everyone I love is suffering for it."

Leaning his chin on the crown of her head, he spoke honestly, "You have been through more in passed two months than most sane people could handle in a lifetime. You and I? We are going to kick a gods ass and bring everyone home. Done deal. You wanna know how I know that?"

She gave a quiet hum of affirmation, her watery eyes stuck on the figure tattoo on her Seith's forehead as she listened.

"I know it because we aren't giving up until we do. There isn't an iota of doubt in Bix's heart. He believes in us and you should to." His words were tired and he was falling asleep as his honest words faded into deep inhales and exhales.

Thanks to her training and near constant physical strain for a month, his weight wasn't anything save comforting and his presence was helping her to calm down. The pain in her chest was easing the longer she stayed with the blunette and for whatever reason, she wanted to make sure Zen was still there. She wanted to make sure he hadn't disappeared. If she was being honest with herself, she was paranoid she would forget and that this whole thing was some really convoluted bad dream; that Zen would be gone just like Cristoff, Vander and Kaleb would be and she'd just wake up in her apartment without knowing any of the Pradesh brood save her very handsome Seith.

"We aren't going anywhere, Lucy, and we will make it out of Joya." It was Kaleb who spoke up but it could have been any one of the beings present and it would have eased her struggling.

When she felt a light touch to her cheek, her eyes closed impulsively and she leaned into the touch, Zen's rough voice was almost unnaturally soft, the gentle tone catching in his throat it was so foreign, "I'd like to stay with you until my brother wakes, if you'll allow, sternchen."

Her head nodded minutely without opening her eyes as her hand held his to her cheek. Her voice was tinged in with a slight daze as the events started catching up to her and the soothing auras coming from the men surrounding her slowly melted her into herself, "I think, very much that I would like that," and she wasn't lying. She needed to make sure she could get back to him so he wasn't alone in his corner of the Spirit World. Her thoughts were faded quickly as she smiled up at the newest Pradesh in her life before leaning forward onto Bickslow's mattress and falling asleep with Cristoff still slumped over her body.

Taking the time to give the remaining three men unreadable looks, the Mindbender motioned for Draco, Loke and Zen to follow him to have a discussion about how this was supposed to work on a more basic and technical level because the cosmic universe doesn't like when you mess with fate and soulmates.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

When Bickslow finally came to, his head felt lighter and his chest was warm, really warm and there was a weight that felt like Laxus had passed out on top of him but his hands were tangled in the unmistakable silk of his mate.

The instance that word came on his radar, his eyes burst open and a flood of bright green light filled the room to take account of the souls nearby, the additional shadowy gold soul going unnoticed as he sat upward and took Lucy's very panicked face in. His hands were mapping over her body, making sure every piece was there when her airy giggles sounded and he raised his head to meet her warm gaze.

Her voice was a symphony of relief and affection as she took his face in her hands, her legs straddled over his hips, "I missed you, baby."

Before he could answer in kind, her pillowy lips met his in a sweet, lengthy kiss before wrapping her arms around his neck and nuzzling into his neck, her lips pressing feathery-light kisses over the planes of his deeply tanned skin of his neck as they both murmured their own reassurances to the other.

Cristoff's massive frame stirred from beneath the covers beside them as Vander sat cross-legged beside the mattress impatiently, his knees bouncing enough to wake the dead. His ability to let Bickslow have his moment completely halted after thirty more seconds of cooing before the Shadowquip himself straddled over the Seith Mage's legs and wrapped her in a bear hug.

Chuckling at the addition to her morning cuddles, she turned her head enough to peak at Vander's smiling face. "Mornin' Red. How's the spying coming along?"

His own low chuckles responded before his arm tightened just slightly, "Boring compared to you, starshine."

"We can trade if you want. You can take on the God of War and I can lurk around peeping in windows." Her voice was light and teasing to match the glint of mirth in her golden-honey eyes.

The young Pradesh was uncharacteristically silent behind her, pulling at her heart. So she gave Bix's figure mark a light kiss before wrapping her hands around Vander's arms twined around her stomach. The tone of her melodic voice was gentle but it held her usual playfulness, "Don't worry so much or you'll wrinkle your beautiful face."

The Lunar Slayer, finally stirring enough to remove the blanket from his face and roll over on his side, the unruly raven hair millimeters from tickling Bickslow's face as he drawled lazily, "Ah yes, my beautiful little brother who only uses his good looks for his own gain."

Flopping backwards with a toothy grin on his face, Bickslow sighed out, "Is there anyone else lurking around?" He was joking but just as the words left his mouth, Draco and Loke both popped out, the latter elbowing the former after Draco casually shoved the Lion Spirit with his shoulder as he approached the communal bedspace.

Clearing his throat before giving both Lucy and Cristoff a fatherly look of pride, his distinct voice commanded the space, "Get dressed and get out here, you've got a brother to meet." The ancient dragon's eyes landed solely on Lucy, his reflected just a glimmer or guilt as he continued, "If you would come out first and alone, I think it would calm him down enough to be able to meet everyone else properly."

At the phrase 'calm him down enough', the Celestial Slayer's heart rate picked up with worry for Zen and before she really knew what she was doing, she was calmly unwinding herself from Vander, pressing another languid kiss to her mate and crossing the room to where a folded golden divider had been set up to change, the leader of the Zodiac in tow.

While the little blonde got changed, Cristoff shoved Vander from atop Bickslow as Bickslow sat up to follow Lucy as well, only to be cut off halfway by Draco. Something that didn't sit well with the Seith Mage.

"Bickslow, look at me. I found Zen about a year ago but between your father and I, it took months to get him out of the Pits and he had already spent his life there. For whatever reason, Lucy makes him...less feral. Something you're going to need to keep in mind when you meet him. He doesn't like physical contact and he doesn't respond to aggression well. He holds the last of the dying Archangel Magic but he lacks the basic emotional ties to keep him from using it the right way. He needs his family back and Lulu is the key to that, do you understand?"

Yes, he understood but that didn't make it easy for him. The brother he never got to know is back and this whole time, he's been in the Pits. The Pits of Pergrande are well-known for its brutality and gambling. The gladiators are nothing more than toys, raised to be blood-thirsty and cold-hearted. His father had been trying to get enough support to shut them down but it was nearly impossible without declaring war on the country as a whole. If his Lucy gave Zen comfort enough to be able come back to his family, there was no way he would stand in the way. He knew how hard Zen's death hit his father and he would do anything to get him back. So the blunette gave a determined nod of his head before sidestepping the dragon himself to talk to his mate.

When he got closer, the exchange between the Celestial beings came clearer and the distinct sounds of an argument took over. His mates voice a low hiss, "Yes, you baka cat, I know. Or at least I think I know."

"You think you know?! He isn't some broken object you can fix, he's an Archangel and that means the two of you are going to be fighting a natural urge for the rest of your lives! I don't understand how you can be so casual with this…"

"Casual? I'm being calm and rational. There is a difference and I'm pretty sure we've already had the 'back off dad-cat' conversation, so here is your one and only warning, Loke; do not get in my way on this. I'm doing it with or without you but I'd really like to do this with you."

Bickslow turned the corner just as Lucy smoothed out the crisp white linen of her floor length dress. She had piled her hair loosely on her head and a golden collar the looked like feathered wings delicately molded around her neck to come to a point in the center of her chest. Her cinched waist accentuated further by the draping material of her slitted skirt as she swayed away from Loke's agitated frame towards her towering mate. He knew the what the fire in her eyes meant and it only tugged the corner of his lips up in her favorite crooked smile.

His tone was back to his usual mirthful self as one arm made its way around her back and the other cupped her cheek only to dip her body back and pepper her lips through the giggles bubbling out, her hands gripping his shirt as their laughter bounced off the stone walls.

The good mood was infectious as a very faint smile spread across both Draco and Vander's lips as Cristoff's low laughter joined in. The Lunar Slayer's voice was bright as he wrapped the Shadowquip in a half hug, "Not to rush anything, but if you could go calm down my brother enough for me to meet him, that would be really awesome, little sis."

When the couple came out from behind the divider, their hands tangled in each other, both their faces were filled with the affection and love they clearly held for the other. Lucy's voice was brimming with her usual bouncy positivity, "I couldn't agree more, Charming."

With that, she gave Bix's hand a reassuring squeeze as his head ducked to hers, "Go get 'em, tiger," before she slipped out the door with her arm in the crook of Draco's arm.

The moment the door shut behind them, Bicklow's head went into his hands as he let out a heavy sigh. This action drew his younger brothers attention as Vander asked slyly, "Worried another brother is going to take a piece of your woman?"

Rolling his deep red eyes, he gave a flippant hand gesture to shoo him away, "I'm more worried about this all being too much for my woman. This job is insane and our mating is only making it harder. I can't believe we're about to meet Zen for the first time and she's gotta be the one to play mediator. It's just fucking nuts."

Giving his bulky shoulders a shrug, Cristoff gave the blunette a pat on the back. "Yeah it is, but what else would expect from your trouble-attracting mate?" His words were enough to pull him out of momentary funk before the brothers dissolved into girly gossip about the Archangel Mage and lost older brother.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Zen had been pacing the walls of the room like the caged beast he was in the halls beneath the colosseum and that thought alone forced an unnatural groan from the hulking man as he ran his hands through his long mahogany hair in an efforts to help with his unease in this situation when he heard Lucy's sweet voice through the door and he stalled his pacing and groaning to listen in on her words.

"...think I'm going to just let you hide him away in the Spirit World, you are sorely mistaken."

Draco's tone had slipped into one the Archangel had never heard from the Celestial Dragon; fatherly annoyance. "My child, you have to understand, he isn't ready to be anywhere else-"

"And I think you're fucking crazy if you think keeping him locked away by himself is going to improve his lack of socialization skills. I'm helping and that's that."

Before he could move away from the door, she had swung it open with haughty look of stubborn victory still on her face before it melted into a genuine smile when she took in his 'deer in the headlights' look of guilt. Her voice was chipper and bubbly as she stepped into his space without a hint of fear; something that hasn't happened for him since he was a young child. "Good morning, Zen. I was hoping you and I could figure out a way to get you rational enough to meet the rest of your- ooomf!"

For whatever reason, the now-oldest Pradesh in Joya unceremoniously wrapped her up in his arms and pressed his nose into her hair to inhale her intoxicating scent, immediately soothing his anxiety. Lucy, being a naturally open and loving person, wound her arms around his waist as he mumbled, "How many of my brothers are here?"

Shooting the dragon a disapproving look, she wondered just how sheltered Draco had kept him in his slice of paradise before answering the hulking mage easily, "Four, Zen. Your youngest brother Vander is here. He's a Shadowquip Mage and a brilliant spy for Bosco. Cristoff is the next brother and he's the Lunar Dragon Slayer, my draconian-sibling through Draco and Nurem and he's the sweetest bear of a man I've ever met. His magic is naturally soothing so I don't want you to think he's intruding when he's just trying to help. Next comes Bickslow. A Seith Mage with a heart of gold mated to myself which leaves Kaleb, the Mindbender with the intense gaze and fantastic hugs you met yesterday. The first to be taken in by Papa Pradesh. You also have two younger sisters, Xally and Emzadi. Zadi being older and the Solar Dragon Slayer and Xally being the youngest and a Water Mage of exceptional ability with a degree in modern medicine." The Celestial Mage's voice grew distracted as her hands started rubbing Zen's back aimlessly, "Although I've yet to meet the girls…."

His tone was curious and open as last night, "My brother Bickslow, does he know of the nature between Archangels and their Celestial Wizards?"

Pulling back to meet his gaze, she tried to keep herself as neutral as possible as her Celestial Magic inside urged her to get closer while the dragon in her soul told her this was already too close, "Not yet, but I don't really know all that much about it myself."

Clearing his throat, Draco cut into the conversation effortlessly, "When you are ready to meet them, I'll explain everything at the same time."

Brushing the length of gorgeous reddish-brown hair behind his shoulders, Lucy perked up at the thought of a happy reunion, "Think you're ready?" Waiting for his reply, she watched his body tense. Each muscle flexing as he took a step back from her and lowered his arms, his fingers twitching as if ready for a fight. That was not the reaction she was expecting as he gave a gruff nod of his head.

Taking a moment to narrow her eyes at him, her head cocked to the side in an utterly adorable way that made Zen's chest tighten before asking curiously, "Would it be okay if we sat instead," gesturing to the plush cushions on the floor as she smiled at him. She thought that maybe sitting would be less threatening for the skittish man.

Another gruff nod of his head later, she took his hand and lead him to the cushions furthest from the door but still facing it so he could see who was coming. These cushions were on the opposite side of the bed that was supposed to hold the Lunar Slayer, putting the piece of furniture between him and 'them' before letting go and sitting with her legs folded together to the side as her body leaned towards Zen's towering frame as he sat cross-legged with his wrists resting on his knees, his hands opening and closing nervously.

Giving Draco a nod of her head, her face turned up towards his before she cautiously took hold of one of his hands in both of hers, her voice barely a whisper, "They already love you, Zen but if it gets to be too much or you need a break, just give my hand a squeeze and we can go back to your home in the Spirit World, okay?"

Without a word or eye contact, he gave her hand a light squeeze before the doors opened and the rest of the Pradesh brood came into the bedroom, Evergreen's jumping frame behind them trying to get a peak at the Missing Pradesh unsuccessful behind them.

The quiet way they marched in was uncomfortable even to Lucy as Kalab leaned against the wall closest to where Zen and she were sitting, Vander crawled on the bed to lay on his stomach with his chin in his hands and a smirk on his face a mere feet from them while Cristoff sat cross-legged on the bed next to him as Bickslow eyed the cushion next to his mate before deciding to sit at the foot of bed across from Kaleb. Before anyone could say anything rational, Vander blurted out, "Since you're older than Kaleb, does that mean you can overrule his incredibly un-fun decisions?"

Pinching the bridge of his nose, the Mindbender let out a tired sigh, "Van, please, can you take this seriously?"

Rolling his pools of wine towards Zen's unmoving face, "Oh yeah, because that's what the situation calls for; more seriousness. Between you and Angelface, you two could suck the life out of an orgy."

Both Bickslow and Lucy tried to keep their soft chuckles in but failed miserably the moment they made eye contact which only succeeded in pulling Cristoff and Vander into their laughter and though everyone save Kaleb missed it, managed to get a crack of a smirk from Zen's stony face and he counted that as a victory.

The impeccably dressed Celestial Dragon cleared his throat to get the ever-unruly bunch of boys to settle before putting his hands behind him, straightening his back and launching into the very militant style debriefing of the ancient entwined history between Celestial Mages and the relationships they share with their Archangels, the almost magnetic, unfightable need to be mated to one in order to open up the rest of their abilities and share their power, and also the story of how Arman came to find out that this champion of the Pits was Zen and Draco managed to get him out using a lot of money and a fake identity that claimed him to be a very reclusive foreign dignitary from Ca-elum with an interest in the fighter for his own private security. A cover that worked just barely before Draco, Arman and the Spirit King decided a slice of his own space would be the best place for him until he could come home. Something they were all looking forward to and when he finished, he waited for their questions.

The first coming from Cristoff directed towards the Archangel Mage himself, "So, Lucy is...what to you?"

Passing his gaze towards the Lunar Slayer, his voice was even but not unkind, "Right now, she feels like home."

Moving towards the edge of the bed closest to their cushions, his face was split into a wide smile as he teased, "She's warm like that. It draws you in before you even know what you've gotten yourself into."

Sensing the way their older brother was slowly losing the tension in his shoulders, Vander flipped over on his back to let his hair almost skim the floor as he added, "Little sneak even managed to steal a piece of my soul, she's so 'warm'."

Mildly offended at the dig, Lucy shot back, "It was your tricksy ways that made us exchange a piece of our souls. You were the one that wanted me around you always and you have a piece of my soul in return."

"You were the one getting down and dirty on stage."

"You were the one voluntarily trying to rile your brother up by hitting on me."

The Shadow Mage gave a motion of agreement to the blonde as he conceded, "True."

Throwing his two cents in from where he somehow managed to get lounged on the three cushions beside his draconian-sibling with his raven head of hair in her lap, Cristoff drawled casually, "And you knew exactly who she was and proceeded to let me antagonize poor Bixy unknowingly as well. Low blow, bro."

Though the sudden closeness threw Zen, the immediate response from Lucy settled his nerves, "Puh-lease, Red, you wouldn't know what to do with yourself if you didn't have me to pop in on and we happen to make an amazing singing duo. And I was very drunk. And you are a bad influence."

A round of 'agreed's came from around the room from the other siblings personally victimized by Vander Pradesh before the Lunar Slayer muttered sarcastically, "Yeah, he let me loose on a cruise ship full of unsuspecting people under the full moon."

Giving a parental shake of her head, she scolded the now hysterically laughing Shadowquip playfully, "Will your reign of chaos ever cease?"

While the younger mages settled into their usual easy conversation, Kaleb was especially interested in Zen and Bickslow's thoughts. The latter focused solely on fact that his mate was here as were his brothers while the former observed and took them in. He was obviously on the defensive being trapped in a stone room with some seriously powerful individuals but his thoughts almost always cycled back to Lucy. Watching the Archangel Mage, his eyes often wandered between their faces, taking in their expressions, analyzing them for weaknesses and patterns by habit before glancing where one of the Celestial Slayer's hands always stayed connected to his and his posture would relax just barely.

When mid-sentence, her words died in her throat and she very abruptly stiffened before turning to Zen and blurting out, "You're about to meet my big brother Laxus and he's going to be really abrasive but I don't want you to freak out because it's okay."

His brows furrowed deeply as his eyes narrowed in obvious objection to her words before the Lightning Slayer slammed the door open, his torso bare and his hair dishevelled as crossed the room on a warpath for his little sister. The instant his half-asleep brain saw the beast of a man glaring at him from beside said sister, his dragon went on the defense as his canines flashed beneath his lips.

Before Zen could strike Laxus like he was clearly getting ready to do by the tension in his muscled physique, Lucy knelt in front him with a determined look on her face, "Oh no no, this will not happen. Not here, not anywhere so how about I introduce you properly."

He couldn't get his words out fast enough and Lucy took the few seconds to stand and practically drag him to his feet so the two men were face to face save for her short frame between them as she beamed up at Laxus, "Spark Plug, this is Zen Pradesh, Arman's second-"

"I know who he is. Why's he attached to your hip?" His words were typical for the brusque mage as he continued staring at Zen, his hands crossed over his chest in an effort to maintain control until he knew what was going on.

"I've spent my life battling for the right to keep breathing by cutting the breath from my opponents and that's all I've known, how I was raised. The time since leaving the pits have been...disheartening. I don't respond well to other people and my magic has been fluctuating but the moment she stepped foot in my slice of heaven, it was like I could think straight for the first time and my magic was mine again. I'll stay attached to her hip as long as she'll let me." Though his words were sharp, his body language held a relaxed confidence that exuded testosterone fueled bite and Lucy realized he was trying to intimidate the Lightning Slayer.

Taking in his words, Laxus moved all of his attention back to Lucy as his tone went back to usual, completely ignoring Zen's words and posture, "Everything good, Blondie?"

Quirking the corner of her lip up in a smirk, she wrapped her arms around his ribs and mumbled into his chest, "Yeah, everything's good. How're things going with you?" Her tone very obviously suggesting something more as she lifted her head to wiggle her eyebrows at him. He very quickly released her and moved next to Kaleb, just the faintest, most imperceptible pink coloring the apples of his cheeks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I know things are getting a little confusing but stick with me and it'll clear up. If there are any questions at all, you just go right ahead and ask me. I love questions.  
> Thanks again for staying with me. Y'all are awesome.


	17. Step Seventeen: Avoid the Drama Bombs

Step Seventeen: Avoid the Drama Bombs

By the time breakfast had come and they all seated around the low table once again to take their meal on cushions; Lucy sandwiched happily between Bickslow and Zen, Cristoff on Zen's other side trying his best to very slowly creep closer and closer to his lost brother without spooking his lost brother and Evergreen on Bickslow's other side while Kaleb and Laxus sat across from Zen and Lucy with Freed by Laxus' side, Vander by Kaleb's and Draco at the head, though he was giving a slight glare at Zen because he wanted to sit by Lucy, as they dug into a breakfast consisting mostly of fruit and dried meat.

The group had really only been eating for a few minutes when Draco's serious voice broke the light banter between everyone, "I think it best if Zen and I leave after breakfast."

This statement sent a visible wave of disagreement through the group as they all stiffened and turned attention to the ancient man but only the Celestial Slayer was brave enough to say something to the powerful Celestial Dragon Spirit. Her voice was edged with something hard but still managed to stay respectful as she spoke frankly, "With all due respect, I think it best if he decide when he's had enough for one day." Missing the very faint but decidedly devious smirk on her draconian-father's face, Lucy turned to talk to Zen, her voice lighter as she looked up into his unreadable face, "We are expecting a visit from the Oracle and when she arrives you'll have to leave until she leaves, but I can come get you right after if you want. It'll be much faster if I do it." Rubbing the back of her neck as she ducked her head to add sheepishly, "I've never taken anyone but Van with me while gate-hopping but you have wings and I have faith. It can't end too badly." Though she was playing at making fun, there was a certain uncertainty about that aspect of her magic she could do without.

For the first time since he had been there, the Archangel Mage let out a low rich chuckles that washed the room over with an unexpected warmth before responding with a subtle smile still on his lips, "I should have known you were a summoner when Loke first brought you to me."

Her Seith spoke up casually from her other side despite the fact that his brothers laughter was making his heart do backflips due to something akin to mild victory, "Usually it's her keys that give her away but Starlight doesn't need them physically with her to call her spirits out anymore. She's a beast."

Though everyone present aside from Draco thought that pretty mundane as far as Celestial Mages go thanks to the lack of knowledge available and low number of Celestial Mages currently in existence, Zen knew the kind of trust you needed to summon a Celestial Spirit, especially the Zodiacs, without their key in hand and on top of that, the sheer power to be able to open a gate without said key is remarkable. This astonishment was present in his voice as all thoughts of food left and his body turned to face Lucy, "You don't need your keys to open a gate?"

Feeling pride swell in her chest and a slight blush cross her cheeks when Zen's predatory gaze turned soft for just a moment, she glanced at Draco with a closed-mouth smile before answering confidently, "I don't as long as my spirits are comfortable with it and I can open my own gate to anywhere I can picture clearly enough so I don't land somewhere...less than ideal."

"Impressive," was all the mahogany-haired beauty said as he went back to eating and the pride in her chest turned warm as she laced her fingers with Bickslow's in his lap to pull a grin from the somewhat tame Seith.

The Shadow Mage's low chuckles almost covered his words but everyone present heard them to join in on his jolly good time as he leaned back on one arm and grinned at his newest sibling. "You'll have to tell me how the landing goes, bro."

Piqued by the choice of words, Zen's face twisted into confusion, his dark brows furrowing just barely as his striking eyes narrowed, while he parroted hesitantly, "The landing?"

Lucy couldn't help but roll her eyes in spite of the broad smile on her face as Vander's devilish smirk greeted her before he answered cryptically, "She's only had less than a month with the powers, I know she's a genius but come on, cut her some slack if the landings are a little rough."

Though his voice was chiding, his body language told a different, much more playful story. One Zen was finding endlessly entertaining as he took in the dramatically different brothers he's acquired. While he had seen, fought and killed sibling gladiators, he never had anyone save himself to worry about before and now that he has people, a family that was his, he would try his damnedest to keep them safe and together, something that might prove to be the hardest fight of his life with what he's learned overnight.

They were settling into the quiet nicely when the Rune Mage's smooth voice sounded after he cleared his throat quietly, "I've done some reading on Anhur and he used to be the patron god of Joya before the Dragako Treaty was signed and though technically he is still the patron god for the Joyan Royal Army, most serve Amun-Ra over Anhur. The gods are known for their jealousy and with the right influence have been known to topple empires for it."

It was Laxus who spoke up next, his voice rough but genuinely inquisitive, "You think that's what this is?"

With a nod of his light-green head of hair, Freed continued, "I also find it too coincidental that he has another moniker; Sky-bearer. I haven't found anything more than that on the god though. They would have more accurate records here with the scribes; maybe even the Thoth would know."

After chewing a particularly large piece of meat, Vander added with a casual drawl, "The High Priest of Anhur is a real oddball though. He spends most of his day talking to Anhur's statue in his temple or with the King and when he's with the King, he's talking about Anhur like a god of war needs a hype man. I think the green of envy has taken root in the God of War and he's using the King's unrest to his advantage."

"What is the King's unrest?"

Though most were surprised by the Archangel Mage's direct way of being, Bickslow gave him all they knew of the King without yet getting the chance to speak with him as his babies floated in from his bedroom to head straight for Lucy. "King Illium has been the public figurehead of Joya for twenty years and for eighteen of them, life for the Joyan people had improved thanks to his military background and the full support of the citizens and High Priests at the time but something set him off two years ago and he's put a stop to exporting all together and relations with Stella have turned hostile. Though both governments have refused to acknowledge it."

Leaning back so he could actually see and pay attention to his younger brother while the blonde between them blissfully cooed, played and gossiped with the babies, he couldn't help but be distracted by her overwhelming being. Much like his brother, Bickslow also got caught in his mate's warm glow, stalling their conversation completely, much to the amusement of Draco, Ever and Kaleb while Laxus took the scene in with a grimace on his face.

Before the Lightning Slayer could say the very rude and unwarranted words he wanted to say, Kaleb's frame leaned into him, his silky voice sounding in Laxus' head. You're going to be biting your tongue a lot if you keep that attitude up.

As if it were totally normal, Laxus shot back with a scowl now firmly in place. I'm gonna be doing a lot more than that if I have to watch another fucking Pradesh hit on my little sister.

A keen smile spread on Kaleb's lips as he took another bite of the most ripe peach he's ever had. Zadi's always been a wild card but I think she's safe from Xally at least.

Joy of joys. Sarcasm suited Laxus much more than outright disdain so Kaleb let him go as he watched steel-blue eyes widen a fraction when the Mindbender casually rested his arm on the Dragon Slayer's knee while he ate.

The scene would have been hilarious out loud, but thankfully for Laxus, it wasn't though at about the same time he was about to look up to see if anyone else had noticed, all three of the Dragon Slayers and Draco turned to the door with their nostrils flaring.

"Siwa is coming and I really don't want the High Priestess of all of fucking Joya knowing Zen's here so you two," pointedly making eye contact with Zen and Draco while trying to focus on the situation at hand and not the fact that Kaleb's hand was starting to casually wander up the inside of his thigh, "need to go. Blondie'll get you when she leaves."

How hard is it, Laxus? For you to concentrate that is. Kaleb knew it would take Draco and Zen all of two seconds to leave so he really wasn't to worried about them being seen but he was finding himself rapidly becoming addicted to the way the future guildmaster seemed to only get flustered around him. Now was a prime opportunity to do just that.

Ignoring the silky smooth drawl in his mind, Laxus continued a little more rushed than usual, "Hopefully Siwa will have some more information to go on."

Seeing the way the corner of his scarred eye twitched, Lucy tilted her head out of worry for her brother. The eye twitch usually came out when they had to talk to a particularly awful client or he had to keep his cool with the Magic Council or when she and Bix got entirely too close for comfort with their teasing about the Wizard Saint and Guildmaster of the White Sea accompanying them.

When the pieces finally clicked and her eyes darted south to see Kaleb's whole forearm beneath the low table and very decidedly in Laxus' lap, she let out an excited squeal for girlish romantics everywhere before covering it with a coughing spell that concerned Zen enough to rub her back on impulse and Bickslow to follow her line of vision. Noticing what his mate had just taken in, he got Van's attention with a subtle head nod the Shadowquip was very familiar with as a means of silent communication between brothers before drawing the youngest into the developing couple.

The moment Vander took notice that his brother's palm was massaging the muscle of Laxus' thigh, a shit eating grin crossed on his face. It took everything in his power to not make a scene from it because oh, could he make a whole production over the seemingly simple action, but Zen and Draco were standing to leave and he had shadows to commune with so the beefy lovebirds caught a temporary reprieve until he could circle back to it. He would most definitely be circling back to it. Until then, he would settle with observing and collecting secrets to cash in later. Right on par with his usual activities for the day.

Lucy and Bickslow, both entirely too affectionate for their own good, each gave Zen a quick and relatively painless hug before Draco pressed a lingering, prideful kiss to the top of her head and let her know he would stay with Zen to answer any questions he had.

As the two held easy banter, Cristoff spoke easily to Zen, though he was still refraining from invading his space too much, "It shouldn't be too long of a wait. The High Priest doesn't mince words and she's got a lot on her plate right now."

As if it were the most natural response, Zen stayed dead still and said, "Probably wouldn't mind the help of a man of your stature."

Opening his mouth to counter, he found himself closing it again before agreeing. "I suppose I could help her out."

Remembering how relatively painless if a little uncomfortable the contact was with Bickslow, Zen initiated an awkward embrace with the more sensitive of his brothers. Not willing to let the opportunity pass, Cristoff returned the hug with his own, a wide toothless smile on his face before letting him go and gently pushing him towards Draco for the two to disappear just as Siwa's small frame glided into the room. Her robes were completely different from yesterday. Gone were the layers and layers and in their place, a floor length deep blue silk skirt fell just long enough to have a moderate train follow behind her while the faintly raised markings that covered her body flashed through a high slit up her left thigh with every graceful step, her ankles each stacked with gold bands that matched the gold and lapis lazuli bracelets, armlets and thick gold necklace holding up the halter top of matching blue silk with an almost sheer golden shawl-like cape draped over her bare back. Though she still wore the heavy golden falcon headpiece, her lips were set in a tight line that did not bode well for the rest of the party.

The usual detached tone fell from her lips as she stopped just shy of the first pool of water effortlessly, "I've been summoned to the King's chambers for a meeting and-"

In a moment of weakness, her chin lowered almost in embarrassment before she took a deep breath and continued quietly, "I was hoping one of you would accompany me. I do not trust that this meeting will go well for myself if I go in alone but I fear if I bring someone else it will draw suspicion. No one else has ever accompanied me anywhere and I do not trust anyone within the palaces walls."

The Lunar Slayer was entirely distracted by the way the little priestess' graceful body moved and how every inch of it below her defined jaw was covered in those raised markings and missed her words entirely but Vander heard them and quickly put his claim on the job, but not before volunteering Cristoff as well. Oh, I got this one if you want to just stand next to Helmet Head and look pretty.

Confused from his lack of actually paying attention, Cristoff turned to look at Kaleb and Laxus when they both gave nods of approval, the Mindbender's smooth voice reaffirming the action out loud, "I think it would be best if you took either Lucy or Cris and since Lu is still recovering, you've earned yourself one of Bosco's best to escort you, High Priest." Knowing Vander would stay in the shadows, he added silently. Be careful and let us know what's going on.

Don't worry your heart out, you big lug. I'm always careful. Vander's tone was playful and teasing.

Cristoff's tone reflected the confusion still apparent on his handsome chiseled face. Umm, what am I doing?

"Excellent. I was hoping to get some time with you to talk more of your gifts. Khonsu spoke with me before leaving the temple and I think you'll find it intriguing at the least." Her hand lifted daintily to summon him to follow her as she turned and left with little pomp.

Whispering in a rush as she gently pushed the massive raven-haired slayer through the room to the hallway after his charge for the day, Lucy tried her best to give him all the basic information, "Siwa needs a bodyguard for a meeting with the King and guess who's been selected? It's you! Congrats! Have fun, be safe and don't say anything about her clothes. Those robes are extremely formal and only used in the most important religious or political celebrations. Don't do anything I wouldn't do and remember to only drink the wine Siwa pours! And don't eat anything!" Her last words were a whisper-scream around the bend of the archway as his wide strides quickly caught up to the Oracle and he sent her a dismissive wave of his hand backwards.

His words were a play-haughty as he gave her a wink before turning around. Get those ridiculous hearts out of your eyes, Princess.

I will do absolutely no such thing, Charming, was her simple and totally honest response as her smile turned toothy and scheming on her way back to where Bickslow was stretching his back with his arms high above his head.

His voice was tight as his shoulders and back flexed beneath the tight black undershirt he wore beneath his knightly regalia, "I think the rest of us are going to look through the records to see if we can find anything more on Anhur or his High Priest, like maybe a name or a nice portrait so we could have any information at all."

Chuckling as she wrapped her arms around his lithe body to run her hands over his back, the little blonde's smile didn't falter as she started her scheming already. "What do you think of the Oracle?" Her head tilted innocently as she waited with baited breath for his response.

He raised a brow as his eyes wrinkled in the hopes that he gave her the right answer since he only had one honest one to give. "Uh, I guess she's okay. Little out there with her wardrobe choices and the creepy haunted house vibes she puts out are intense but yeah, I guess she is okay. If you're trying to set my brother up with the untouchable and highly important High Priest of Amun-Ra and fabled Oracle of Opalle, I'm unfortunately going to have to put a stop to it right now."

Put off by the casual put down, Lucy cocked her hip out as her she kept her tone in check, but just barely. She hated seeing Cristoff alone. "And why's that?"

This time, his eyes went soft as he framed her face with his hands and traced over her cheeks lovingly, "Because no one wants him to find his mate more than he does. It's a soft spot for him 'cause he's like you, a bleeding heart and a romantic. He's just biding his time until he finds her or him and when he finds them, nothing, absolutely nothing is going to keep him from having that and you need to trust in that same as the rest of us, starlight."

As more words spilled from his lips, the more she realized her meddling would only make things worse for her sibling and she just wanted him happy. So she let the hearts in her eyes shrink back down to normal size and decided to go back to their initial conversation, her voice back to its normal lilt, "I'm honestly a little jealous that you get to go elbow deep in scrolls."

His smile grew as she started swaying unconsciously to music only she could hear. Bickslow knew she would start humming along to the silent symphony that lived in her mind and as soon as she did, he started dancing with her, his voice lighter than it was before, "And I'm a little more than a little jealous that you get to go to the super secret Spirit World while I pretend to be reading the scrolls I'll be elbow deep in."

His cheeky smile and easy motions were pulling her from her funk and letting her forget a whole country rested on their shoulders. Something that would prove impossible to anyone else. While she was torn between keeping her eyes on his and nuzzling her cheek into his comforting scent, the cuddling won out as she breathed out happily, "I love you, Bixy-babe."

The instant it fell from her mouth, she had a habitual wave of nausea that followed at the involuntary and totally unnecessary anxiety and dread at waiting for a response.

Thankfully it took the Seith all of two seconds to dip her down and plant a passionate kiss on her perfect pouty lips before pulling away just enough to say, "I love you, Kitten," his lips ghosting over hers before smashing their lips together again.

The rest of the human beings in the room let out a mostly sarcastic and obnoxious round of 'awwww's and kissy noises that went totally and joyfully ignored by the mated pair.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Draco, having watched the whole thing from the pool after leaving Zen to his training at the Archangel's request, watched the lovely exchange with a toothy smile and his arms crossed over his chest.

Loke, having watched the slow-curling nefarious smile spread and the scene between his favorite power-couple, narrowed his eyes and asked as neutrally as he could manage, "You know you can't break those two up without killing them, right?"

Rolling his eyes before straightening his already perfectly tailored navy silk suit, he spoke blandly, "Of course. I don't know if you remember housecat, but I was dragon before I became a spirit so I know the laws of a bond and I'm still very happily mated."

Loke stared into the sharp predatory features of Draco's face to try and puzzle out just what was going on behind that face. He obviously wasn't going to break the two up because that was impossible without essentially murdering both mages and he obviously wasn't giving up on this whole 'strongest match' thing for Zen, which left him utterly confused for a man known for his womanizing playboy ways. "What's your angle, lizard?"

Bristling at the perceived threat, Draco countered deftly, "What's yours, cat?"

Puffing his chest as he fixed his beautiful star cufflinks, a gift from Lucy years ago, his voice filled with bravado, "Lucy is my mage and I've sworn my life to her lineage. I won't have you playing god because you want special perfect babies. She and Bickslow will have babies. You can play with those."

"Of all the stars," his fingers went to his temples to massage the growing headache before squaring his shoulders and gripping Loke's thinner shoulders to take the Leader of the Zodiac by surprise, "Loke, do you remember the Archangels?"

Uncomfortable with the direct contact, his body stiffened before the Lion spirit answered evenly, "Yes."

"How many can you name?"

Opening his mouth to answer, he realized he couldn't name any aside from Michael and Gabriel which was a cheat anyway because there were quite a few of each through the millenia. Swallowing his pride, he answered reluctantly, hesitant to give the Celestial Dragon any victory no matter how small. "I can't actually name any. Or picture any."

"And what are the Archangels supposed to do?"

Loke loathed being treated like a child. He was older than the dragon as far as time spent as a spirit goes and he knew the Archangels used to be vital in keeping balance and protecting the heavens and their keepers but centuries have passed since the last one, and the heavens are still here. Loke wasn't saying they should die out because truly it would be a tragedy; he just didn't understand why his Lucy had to be the one to carry it on. "Look, I get it. She's a powerhouse and literally perfect for the job, but she already has a mate. A mate she loves and wants to marry."

"Which she will, but Seith Mages don't live forever."

"And neither will she."

"Are you sure about that?"

The way he said it, Loke knew instantly that Draco was keeping something to himself and on a good day between the two rivals would have bothered him to the point of irritation but this had to do with Lucy, his mage and the only reason he was still here so the lack of sharing sent him straight into a cool, controlled anger that stayed tame in his chest like an expertly tended fire.

Outwardly on the defensive for his mage because even more prevalent than his own personal attachments to the blonde, what more could you possibly throw at her? He hardened his tone and body as he stepped out of the dragon's grip, a side he rarely showed even battling in tandem with his Celestial Mage, "What do you know? If its got anything to do with Lucy, you need to tell her, Draco. She's not like the other mages. She's special, gifted. You can't keep putting her through these insane things and expect her to come of it okay! And if it's got something to do with her life, stars, you better tell me right now because I've sworn myself to her and her kin and I will not be left out of the loop-"

"Loke." Surprisingly, Draco's tone managed to convey just the barest hints of humor through the firmly spoken word intended to cut off what was sure to only be the beginning of a long-winded monologue. He waited until the Lion Spirit's mouth pressed in a wildly childish expression that clearly captured his rebellious attitude and not his age before continuing in a way that was more direct. "I will tell you but you must promise to not say a word to my daughter until I can have a real discussion with the Spirit King and Arman first." Waiting to see if he would make the promise, Draco would respect the Leader of the Zodiacs decision whichever it may be. He might not always agree with the flamboyant spirit but he was a still a powerful entity all on his own.

Loke was having an internalized crisis so intense, he regretted even approaching the reflecting pool in the first place. On the one hand, he desperately needed to ease the gnawing churning of his gut at the prospect that Lucy might be in even more danger than she already was but on the other hand, if he promised to keep it from her and failed, it would cause very big problems for him and if he managed to keep it from her successfully, he just didn't know how he would feel about basically lying to her. Even if she was capable of pulling off lying, she never lied to her spirit family. The back and forth of his emotions was so strong, he actually felt a tug on his magic and looked down in the pool to the Celestial Princess' face skewed in worry as she tried to summon him from she and Bickslow's room as they got ready.

Fixing his glasses on his now unreadable face, he gave the dragon a bland, unreadable look before speaking clearly, "I will return and you will tell me everything. Top to bottom, and I will decide whether or not I agree with your decision to keep it from her."

Though they had their differences, the Celestial Dragon felt only a reassuring admiration for the cat's dedication to his daughter. He would never express that to anyone ever, especially not the ginger lion who had vanished to heed Lucy's silent request. It almost amazed him at just how naive such an old being could be. After all, Loke said it himself; she's special, gifted.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

As soon as Loke appeared in front of Lucy, her golden eyes shined with worry. While Bickslow lounged across their bed to watch her undress to change for the day, she had this odd nagging thought that Loke had something to tell her. The last time she had the sensation, Loke managed to not only save the job she was on but her life as well. So she was more than curious as to what she could possibly be about to muff up while with her mate and half-naked.

"What's wrong? Am I about to die again? Are YOU about to die again?" Though she was worried, she couldn't help but tease her spirit a little in the hopes of cheering him up. When his lips split into his signature winning smile, it was like a breath of fresh air she hadn't known she needed.

Bickslow's rich playful voice sounded from his completely at ease position, "Do I wanna know why both of those questions ended in 'again'?"

A lazy smile tugged his lips as Lucy and Loke shared a look that that almost too clearly said "how many times has it been now?' and he suddenly felt the foreign pang of anxiety at knowing what that meant.

The ginger spirit pushed his glasses up as he spoke in his usual bright tone, "Stories for another time I think. Let's get to the reason why you called me out, Princess."

Lucy tilted her head out of confusion at his words before offering, "...didn't you", her hand came up to point at Loke's chest with one hand while her other crossed over her chest, "want to talk to me?". Just as she spoke, her wrist flopped back towards her in a casual manner.

The Leader of the Zodiac was hiding it well, but his mage's uncanny ability to know exactly how he was feeling at any given moment both excited and frightened the immortal. The longer he stayed out, the more he risked Draco running from him and there was absolutely no way he was going to let this one go. But that meant having to wrap this up in a way that didn't arouse suspicion from the too-intuitive-for-her-own-good woman. Hopefully he remembered the last talk he had with Crux and the Spirit King well enough to convince Lucy.

Raising a brow to mirror her confusion, he started speaking slow, adjusting his cufflinks once again then built to his usual vigor as he met Lucy's unwavering gaze. "Ah, yes I was hoping you could use some information Crux managed to dig up while we were looking for more information on Joya and its' unusual governing body. It seems the King's daughter is a mage with a most...unexpected magic. She's a Starwalker. Though it doesn't make her a Celestial Mage, her magic makes her a conduit to the Spirit World. Or it would if the King would let her train. Right now all she can do is talk to the constellations and the spirits they represent, though she's convinced she hears the gods."

Lucy blinked once, twice, three times before turning to Bickslow with her brows furrowed and her lips pressed together in a frown. "Did he just say Starwalker? Like Star. Walker. Starwalker."

His eyes shot to the upper corner of the room as he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned forward. After a few moments, his head lifted and he nodded to confirm for them both. "Uh, yeah. Yes he did. Starwalker. What a kick ass magic."

The Celestial Slayer's eyes went googly as she murmured happily under breath, "She's a Jedi. She's a real live Jedi."

Rolling his eyes at the two of them, he continued so he could get out of there. "Which means, whether she knows it or not, we have a connection to her-"

Lucy mumbled sarcastically as she snickered, "Vander already has a connection for us…"

Ignoring her interruption and the cackling laughter that followed from the Seith, Loke finished, "-if we can find the spirits she likes talking to."

"As long as it's not Canis Minor, we should have a pretty good chance of finding her." Satisfied that both her worry was for nothing and that Loke was okay, she hugged her Lion Spirit as she breathed out into his tailored suit that she could have sworn almost, almost, smelled faintly of her draconic father, "I'm glad you're okay. I'm sorry for calling you out I just had this nagging feeling you wanted to talk to me. Let me know if you need any help from me or if you find anything out, okay?"

Pulling her in just a little closer, his chest tightened before whispering out through forced chuckles, "You weren't wrong, Lucy, but I'll be sure to let you know if I do."

Before she could ask why he smelled like Draco, he disappeared. That left her standing in the middle of the room in her underwear looking like a deer in the headlights while her blunette boyfriend lost himself in his laughter.

"What just happened?"

Reining his cackles back into his body, Bickslow crossed the room to run his hands down the backs of Lucy's arms while he answered, "We learned that in addition to having horrible taste in men, the princess is a Jedi."

Nodding her head as she teased, "Rude and unnecessary but valid I guess," before standing on her tiptoes and pressing soft kisses along the underside of his jaw to pull a quiet hum of approval from the Boscan.

When she pulled back to look at his face, his descended on hers in a slow push and pull as her hands tangled in the length of blue hair and his wrapped around her back to unclasp her bra.

Her breathing picked up as his palms swept up the curve of her back to take the piece of lace from her body completely. The moment it was, his lips split into a smile as he wrapped his hands around her thighs and picked her up which sent her into a round of silly quiet giggles as her hands braced herself by grabbing hold of his muscled shoulders and holding tight.

An abrupt knock on the door sounded as Laxus' irritated voice sounded through the door, "Oi, we got shit to do. Let's go." He didn't even wait to hear a response before making a beeline back to the safety of the main room where Freed and Ever were. He wasn't scared of being alone with Kaleb, he just didn't know what the fuck to do when he was alone with Kaleb now and they were about to go to an unexpected sanctuary that would breed no opportunities for the Mindbender to fuck with him.

Is that what you think? You think you'll be safe there? You do know I'm a Mindbender so I kind of feel like you should know that was a shabby excuse to hide from me.

The instant Kaleb's voice entered his head, it felt like the floor both simultaneously dropped out from beneath him while managing to also feel like he was rapidly getting closer and he was about to hit. A feeling that reminded him too much of being on the cruise ship before they found Cristoff. Fuck off, Professor X, was all he could muster up before leaning against the nearest wall and closing his eyes to find some peace from all the bullshit piling up on his plate. He didn't even technically need to be here. Any S-Class would have done and if hadn't been so bent on being a thorn in his sisters side, he would be at home. Safe and sound and straight. Mostly.

Lucy and Bickslow, while pouty at the Lightning Slayer's impeccable timing, managed to simmer down enough for her to put on a pair of loose sapphire blue harem pants with deep plum paisley print and one of her favorite cropped square cut shirts while he put on the rest of his gear despite not having to cover his face.

As she twisted her long curls into twin buns, she chatted to the babies all sitting on the footboard in a row, "What would you guys think about Bixy letting his hair grow?"

In an exaggerated huff, the mage in question let out a teasing, "Not this again," before falling backwards on the low bed with a smile on his face.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Cristoff was going back and forth internally, debating whether or not he should try and have a conversation with Siwa before they go into the King's chambers. He really would feel more comfortable if they had some discussion as to how this would go but she had set a swift pace and her lips were locked in a firm line. He didn't know what a meeting with the King of Joya consisted of and he had no idea why he got volunteered for the job but this was important. He didn't want to mess this up for any one of them.

"You've nothing to worry about, Moon's Child. They will do nothing to harm either of us for fear of making you and the Champion run. I am thankful for your escort." Just as before, her words were a monotone lacking in any real emotion as she held her head high.

Taking her words for what they meant, he answered with a warm smile before speaking. "You don't think having me in front of them with only you to protect me will be a tempting trap?"

"It would be interesting to see them try and take you. I feel the combined powers of both the King and Anhur's High Priest wouldn't last very long against a man of your power."

Cristoff swore he could hear Vander's low cackling at Siwa's use of the verb 'see' while in her headpiece.


	18. Step Eighteen: Have the Talk About Daddies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~ HEY-O, so I'm gonna say this for those of you who read the sheezy-ma-neezy I wrote for Pradesh Week, the little White Lightning blurb is about to become AU and for those who didn't read it, carry on with the chapter as per usual XD I'm SO PSYCHED TO BE A PERSON AGAIN. I'm sorry about all the time. You guys are amazing and your comments have given me renewed life. I hope you like the build up before the big shebang. *whispers behind hand poorly* That means fight club is about to come to Joya. Not this chappie but the next. *bad whispering intensifies* It's about to get a little extra dramatic before the big fight by the way mwuhaha
> 
> SOOO side note. I'm an idiot. I will start putting the translations of foreign words in the notes because I'm sure y'all hate it. Which is my bad. Sorry.
> 
> hanash- classy insult; a snake of a person; thief
> 
> sternchen- little star; starlet
> 
> Fun Fact: Siwa is actually a gorgeous oasis in Egypt. Like fucking gorgeous. But also in the middle of the goddamned desert so that was the inspiration for our very dry and lovely oracle XD ~

Cristoff and Siwa had been silently walking since her mostly one-sided conversation on the give and takes of being gifted. Blessed. Touched by the gods. Not for any other reason than the small Joyan woman making it very difficult to be able to add anything more than agreeances. It didn't help the mood the youngest Pradesh was currently setting for the team. While Cristoff would appreciate some good suspense in the right scenario, he wasn't exactly a huge fan of waiting in dead silence with his brother singing Tiptoeing Through the Tulips on repeat in his head in the most unnerving voice the little shit could muster up. This was not the type of dramatic build-up he appreciated in this particular scenario. Even if it was a pretty funny.

The Lunar Slayer also wouldn't say he was going into this with his usual calm level head thanks to the unnerving silence of the Oracle still gliding effortlessly beside him like they weren't riding full speed ahead into a doomed meeting from the start. The King wasn't exactly safe zone material and Cris was actually a little lost in his head at all the information unloading on him in the long walk. On the way to the luxurious sitting room they were currently in, Siwa dropped another clinically delivered blow. The High Priest of Anhur was also a mage with a defensive magic no one has ever seen or recognized enough to classify. He trusted that this particular meeting wouldn't turn into a brawl but that didn't mean he felt totally relaxed going into this with such a big unknown to try and account for. What if his magic senses other magic? Would he be able to sense Van? Or Kaleb's Mindbender magic? Or could it be something as simple as basic barrier Defense magic like in the vision?

Vander's incessant but unfortunately undeniably pleasant voice finally stopped its singing to give him a verbal pat on the back and steer him out of his curiosity spiral back to his usual easygoing and responsible self. Aw, come on happy moonbeam. We've been in worse spots than this and got out juuust fine. Pretty much every time we go to Stella really, and this is nothing like those times. Perk up. We're all good. Because they were. Vander held no reservations about killing a King to save his family. Wouldn't be the first royal to die by his hands and probably wouldn't be the last given his line of work.

Regardless of his little brother's playful and forward demeanor, he was a damn good soldier and arguably the most dedicated of all their siblings to his family. The cocky attitude was earned throughout years of the toughest fight for his life most with Shadowquip magic don't survive for long. He's fought tooth and nail for the power of his magic and fights for it still. Every single moment, awake or unconscious so his encouragement meant more than most to Cristoff.

Before he could give the Shadow Mage a response, he barely avoided the sharpened beak of Siwa's headpiece from her sudden close proximity to his face out of the blue as she spoke soft but swiftly under breath, "The Priest is coming and he seems in a good mood." Her tone was indistinguishable and almost had more of a cynical dip despite the pleasant news and all Cristoff could think about was when they got on a flight of steps to give her the height advantage on him.

"Is that a bad thing?" It was meant more as a joke than anything but the more he thought about it, the more he really didn't know if he liked that the man facilitating war was in a cheery mood. Probably wouldn't mean well for them at least.

"We shall see." Siwa's casual response both simultaneously sent Vander into more girlish peals of giggles because he was a child and made Cristoff wish he paid a little more attention to what he was getting volunteered for before agreeing. Curse her and that outfit.

The short walk to the chambers from the waiting area was silent for both High Priests acknowledging nothing and no one. The High Priest of Anhur was shrouded in deep red and gold to hide his face from them and Siwa had her usual headpiece on.

You get the feeling we missed a memo somewhere? Vander's voice grew more and amore playful the closer they got to a massive archway that appeared to also be shrouded from their view. Kinda feel like you should let me make you a great big moon head for you to wear. The gods would be very pleased with you. The Shadowquip's face was drawn like an evil sultan in an exaggerated frown going unseen by everyone.

Cristoff's dealing with his little brother's constant and incessant critique of every meaningless thing they came across including their lack of helmets and ceremonial robes had quickly moved from funny to distracting for everyone else tuned into radio Van: Live but let it remain as a sort of white noise that made the Lunar Slayer's bulky shoulders lower just a little and his posture to ease into the sort of calm that saw him through actual combat safely.

Vander's roguish smile went unseen by its intended target but the youngest Pradesh was perfectly fine with that seeing Cris a little more comfortable with the situation. He had been winning the battle with the void but his nightmares had taken a turn since the night of the comet shower. He wouldn't let that happen.

Upon entering the extremely dark room, much to Vander's glee and Siwa's indifference, Cristoff could feel another presence that could only be the King himself lurking in the shadows. Focusing on the man still safely tucked away in the darkness, he tried to get a feel for his state of being with his magic. Though perfectly healthy, he could feel an emotional imbalance inside the older man as well as a much more fatal problem if left unchecked. Magic flowing through his veins tearing him up slowly from the inside out from not being a mage and having to handle the unnatural strain of power he wasn't made to have. The Lunar Slayer's healing spells could ease his pain and heal the damage but it would only be temporarily. Even his magic couldn't just remove foreign magic from inside a non-mage without risk at the drop of a hat.

Cristoff hoped Kaleb was still listening in and could try and find a solution to a problem that would kill the King of Joya without the intervention of constant healing from a powerful healer.

A nasally voice slithered through the shadows and Cristoff was impressed Siwa remain unmoving at the jarring awful noise.

"Ah, High Priestess, how long it has been since we've spoke. How have things been going for Joya's Oracle?" The title a jealous hiss from the hooded priest.

"I've little time for you and your games, hanash." The dismissive insult of a name rolling beautifully from her lips as the High Priest of Anhur seethed his anger from his tense frame. "Why have you summoned me, my king? Is there something you require of me?"

Cristoff remained impressed at her seemingly cold front and wondered in earnest if it was simply her belief that they would make it out of this room that fueled her fearlessness or something else. Visions of the future were well and good and all but they were speculative at best. Anything could alter the path to a different future, prophecy or not.

Grating cackling resounded off the stone walls to assault their ears, letting them know the room was much larger than he initially thought it to be before the priests voice sounded again, "You weren't summoned to these chambers by the King, child. You were summoned here by a god, one ready to finish this." Cristoff fought a sigh at the ominous tone and his own foreboding thoughts from the trip here.

The small woman straightened her already impeccable silk robes with a casualness that looked anything but forced before lifting her head in a subtle nod to convey her easy acceptance of his words before a much deeper, booming voice seemed to resonate through their bones. Neither Pradesh made comment out loud but they both had distinct thoughts that she was going about this an incredibly calm way given the nature of the words just spoken.

The presence grew to be more than just crushing. It was more than a powerful mages aura. This was what it felt like to be face to face with a god. A weight the size of the world rested on their chests and Cristoff's dragon was stirring at the new threat.

"Priestess and Sacred Oracle of the Gods, I have been wronged by your patron God in the most dishonorable of ways. Amon-Ra had stolen something from me he had no right to take and the people celebrated the treasonous act but I will not let my people fall into complacency," the God of War stepped into the dim light, his body built to match someone of Kaleb's stature with the head of a lion set on broad shoulders, lips pulled back into a feral snarl to catch both Vander and Cristoff by surprise. The former murmuring about how much he was not expecting that as Anhur continued with a rumbling growl to the deep bass of his commanding voice. "I challenged the Devourer of Suns and the coward sent Champions to fight in his stead like the unworthy man he is. He's drawn mortals into a battle meant for gods and they will pay the price of his treachery with their lives. You, loyal Priest, will lead these Champions to my true temple in a weeks time to see who has chosen the victorious side. I've yet to be bested in combat and you shall be no different, Son of the Moon Dragon." He carried himself with not only the assurance of a man with only wins under his belt but Anhur wielded his fury under the ruse of righteousness for a perceived wrong. Cristoff was trying to wrap his head around the fact that his head was a wild beast while Vander debated on whether or not he could just shove the arrogant man into the void. God or no, the things in there held no prejudice or fear for any being along their path of destruction. "Go," a careless dismissive move of his hand waved them off, "Prepare as best you can for an honorable death at the hands of the God of War. I'll take my place as head of the Pantheon and lead our people to greatness."

In the dim lighting of the chamber, Cristoff saw Siwa's head tilt just slightly towards the King in the shadows before answering with her usual stiff voice, "As the Gods wish, their will be done," before her robes fanned around her compact, shapely body and she walked straight out of the room with her chin high.

Cristoff moved to follow after as Vander spoke from his perspective in the shadows. Does she know she just planned your funeral for one week from now? She seems way too chill for someone signing death certificates so willy nilly.

Lacking any real bite, the older of the two admonished lightly. Enough, Van. Where's that fighting spirit from before we hung out with a lion headed god?

Not a huge fan of you guys fighting that particular barrel of crazy.

Cristoff's lips spit into a warm smile at the concern behind his brothers deceivingly casual words. They had a date for the end of all this and for that, the Lunar Slayer was at least grateful. They had made through impossible odds, both Fairy Tail and the Pradesh family, and that wouldn't change for anyone.

XxxXXxxXxXxXxxXXxxX

Zen was in the middle of a particularly brutal looking series of stabbing lunges with a gnarly looking one-handed sword. A jagged serrated blade followed the arc of a single smooth swing meant to chop his invisible opponents head clean off when Lucy's gate dumped her out above the lounge she and Zen had slept on. Well mostly she slept and Zen did not. He was very much awake for all of the time the little blonde spent with him. It was hard for him to do anything but sit in rapt contemplation at her entire existence. He'd had the unfortunate pleasure of meeting one other Celestial Mage while fighting for his life and it was the hardest fight of his life. That was really saying something considering the shady sadistic fucks that ran the Pits once set a whole squad of Berserkers on him as a reward for being 'too entertaining to quit'. She was a summoner like Lucy but the keys she used were warped somehow and the seductive pull of her magic had him fighting both the crazy bitch wizard herself, her two corrupted spirits that might have once resembled a horse and a dog both having long lost the ability to be anything more than a shadowy shell of the spirit they once were, and his own very compelling need to baby her thanks to his magic. At the time, he had no idea what the hell was going on. Never in a million years would he have thought himself an angel in any capacity. They called him the Winged Nightmare and he thought his magic was tainted. That he was tainted. At the time it served as his own catalyst for a corrupted sense of revenge. If they wanted a bloody fight, he'd give them a damn good one. Always making a point to toss the heads of all the other champions he killed at the feet of the smug prick in charge of the Pits to ruin his ever crisp snow white robes that no doubt made him feel like royalty amongst the sea of dirt-caked lower class surrounding his platform high above them. It was a rare show of freedom in a world that had none to give but it was one they couldn't take from him without killing their biggest draw.

The shady bitch was his favorite victory though because his usual act of defiance ended in the Ceasar's unnaturally youthful face being splattered with the dark crimson from the cleanly severed head. Looking back on the memory, it brought a faint smile to his face but at the time it was just one more day; one more death.

He saw the way her brows pulled together as she watched his fluid movements with the same critical eye that surely won her countless battles in her lifetime to try and take in the ruthless champion of the unforgiving Pits of Pergrande and the efficient brutality that went hand in hand with the way he moved. It was another few minutes of her lithe frame copying Zen's foreign powerful style before he finally spoke to her with an emotionless but not unkind tone with absolutely no hindrance on himself or his cathartic practicing. He was doing an amazing job at hiding his own instinct to hold her. Close the gap. Be closer. Especially since the thought made his skin crawl at the history of his skin to skin contact he's had and the fact that she was Bickslow's. He needed to have a serious talk with his younger brother before he would even think about initiating any kind of intimate contact with the star-kissed girl. "Think you can keep up, sternchen." His sharp gaze was focused solely forward and for some reason he could just feel how much it pissed her off. Her stance told him she wasn't a fan of being treated like an opponent unworthy of his direct eye contact in favor of the invisible enemies surrounding him. It was tangible, her irritation, and made his stomach stir in ways that he was not accustomed to in any capacity.

Lucy was trying to not let her scales take over at her heightened sensitivity around the mahogany haired Archangel Mage but could feel the way her teeth started ache from the tightness in her jaw from the effort as she set her eyes solely on his frame and tried to bring her ever-present and ever-ready dragon in check once again before answering him.

It was much harder than she thought while stalking closer to the lost Pradesh with her dragon soul gnashing to get a piece of him at the perceived lack of respect he held for her while her Celestial Magic pulled on her heart to close the distance to tuck herself in his embrace. At least she could get her shit together enough to agree that she was too far away from his towering buff build. Her whole being could agree on that fact as she silently called on Scorpio to don her spirit's Dress to give her a boost to speed and agility while giving her all the right armor in all the right places to inflict as much damage as possible without sacrificing mobility. Hopefully, enough to at least go toe to toe with the admittedly intimidating and ruthless man built more like a tank than a person. Her voice was tight with her own irritation at being at emotional odds within herself. "Guess we'll see, huh angelface."

Zen was having a different experience on his end of their unique relationship. While he lacked a dragon soul, the unmistakable and unquellable fire burning like a beacon in his soul from years fighting for his right to survive hungered for an opponent, for blood, and he'd be a liar to the core if he tried to deny Lucy wasn't everything he never knew he wanted and for some inane reason the sole fact that she seemed angry with him only made his hunger that much worse. He was famished and she was the most deliciously forbidden fruit. His motions grew choppy, distracted for a fraction of a second before he heard her featherlight footsteps and controlled breathing vanish completely from behind him.

Without changing from his lowered offensive stance, he took a deep breath and focused on her magic and golden soul that way he would at least know the instant she returned from her sudden sabbatical from his safe little sanctuary with a slow roll of his shoulders to keep his muscles loose. His fingers were reaching out around the hilt of his ragged weapon, the first he'd forged for himself instead of going into his fights bare-fisted, and flexing in anticipation as a slow-curling smile started pulling at the corners of his lips and his knuckles turned white. This was going to fun. Just the type he needed to keep sane. He had no doubts that this would be far different from the matches he's had with Draco and just before Lucy got here, the leader of the Zodiacs as well.

When Lucy reappeared directly in front of him, a move he wasn't planning on since no one ever challenged him head on and she was definitely not the biggest opponent he's ever squared up with. The split second of hesitation giving her just enough time to land a mean roundhouse kick to his jaw, sending his head backwards at a sharp angle that would hurt tomorrow before she started an onslaught of lightning fast jabs, forcing him back into submission. Something that nearly never happened to him. No one ever got the upper hand on him. Especially not short little shits like she was.

Her victory was short-lived as he roared from the impact on his jaw and the ballsy full-frontal tactics his Celestial mage was using in lieu of smarter, safer ones to throw the practice sword he was using to side. If she wanted to duke it out like a back alley fight, who was he to deny her the satisfaction. He wouldn't admit it out loud but thought gave him a nearly uncomfortable surge of adrenaline to prompt his own heavy fist to swing and land a solid punch to her diaphragm. Her lungs stunned, her breath forced from her body against her will as well as knocking her concentration enough to force her to drop the Stardress completely. A dark look took hold on his face that bordered psychotic and she matched it with a flash of her teeth.

Back in her street clothes and pulsing with adrenaline she forced her lungs to take in a breath, ignoring the spasming muscles and the strain on them in favor of gaining invaluable mobility. The air from the Spirit Realm gave her more than just the precious oxygen she desperately needed. She could feel the shards of her element buzzing through her veins and she actually had to fight her Dragon Force from taking over completely, patches of never seen pure golden scales starting at her elongated claws spread up to her wrists in a slow crawl upwards. She flexed her own hands in an unintentional come hither motion that definitely had the same effect of an intentional come hither motion whether she wanted it or not.

Zen dodged forward to keep her trapped in close quarters with remarkable speed for a man of his stature to restrain her by dwarfing each of her gilded wrists in his massive hands with a grip many of the best warriors had little hopes of breaking. It didn't stop her from trying though. She wasn't exactly the norm for females of her stature. In fact she used the added strength of her brand spanking new weird scales that were not from her own Dragon Force to use the impressive set of bulging pecs as the leverage she needed to use her legs to wrench herself free from his grip with both her feet kicking off his chest, a grunt of surprise leaving his mouth as she backflipped off him to land in a slightly off-kilter crouch a good 15 feet in front of his tottering frame. A look of feral anger took hold on his face to match the low growl leaving his chest at the action.

He would have a few bruised ribs to match her own from that little twisty move. A move that shouldn't have been possible without breaking her own wrists. He would know. He watched it happen on multiple occasions. Especially twig wrists like Lucy had. Too bad it was actually his magic already melding with hers that gave her the boost to the dragon part of her soul. Neither one cared enough at the moment to really put any further thought into the impenetrable golden addition to her visage.

Lucy's toothy fanged grin was curling in eager and tantalizing ways that pulled a wild smile of his own at her tenacity and relentless nature. Months he's been out of those festering pits and yet this is what he craved. What he needed. The physical strain of a real fight with a completely unknown powerhouse mage that had all the makings of a champion in their own right. She was a real contender with the proper training. He got the distinct feeling she was soft from the little time he spent with her. Too soft for her own good when it came to fighting to the death and the thought of her perishing in a her or them scenario wasn't something he would tolerate in any capacity. Together or not, Lucy simply had to live. Had to be here. The older Pradesh also had just the set of skills particularly tuned to toughen someone right the hell up. Not that he would admit he was doing just that. At least not yet. He really needed to talk to Bickslow. In the best and worst possible ways, Lucy Heartfilia was already everything to him. Rational or otherwise, he knew at the very core of his being that no one could match him like she already did.

XXxxXxXxxxXxXxxXX

The rest of the scooby gang had been shuffled to a beautiful and enormous library by yet another young servant that spoke very little. The boy was on the lower end of the spectrum of teenage years with inky black hair shaved short with joyful eyes and an easy smile that set the group of five off on a good foot. Until they needed to separate into small groups. Freed claimed responsibility of Ever and Bix to keep the Seith on task and quiet since Laxus would just let him sleep instead of listening to him the whole time. Well, as quiet as he was going to get with being separated from Lucy. Freed remorselessly forced Ever to come with as a blatant punching bag for their wily teammate's ways so he could actually focus on something other than the hysteria of this whole job. The pale green haired beauty of a man had been trying to keep everything as together as he could but having a real goal and hundreds of books surrounding him, he knew he could be of more use here than anywhere else. His insatiable curiosity would be of use. He would find a way to change the premonition.

"How longs it been since you've been laid, snake lady? You seem tense." The question was posed to sound casual but the familial cheshire grin on Bickslow's face completely gave away his humor. Evergreen, the intended reciprocate, just shot him a half-hearted glare before looking to her intelligent friend for instruction as to where in the blue devil she was supposed to start reading for the day. While she hated the actual reading, the sitting still for extended periods of time were much much better than the trek up the mountain and the death crow ride from actual hell. She wouldn't complain. For once. It took Freed all but ten minutes to gather three stacks of books taller than himself on a low table tucked away in a back corner with the sound of the cool flowing water to help create a soothing and peaceful atmosphere perfect for studying the material the Thoth had neutrally pointed out when they arrived.

Bix was under the distinct impression that they were another of the few here to help them. He also understood there was absolutely no way anyone else would be as openly helpful as Siwa. The blunette was also fighting a constant smile and was having immense trouble staying focused. They hadn't even started reading yet.

One floor above and in the complete opposite corner of the library as the Raijinshu, Laxus had read the same fucking paragraph thirteen times in a row and he still had no idea what the damn thing was about. Kaleb had decided to make a point. What point required the 6 foot 4 man to strip his heavy armor and stretch out across a set of vibrantly colored cushions, cut abs and defined beginnings of his adonis lines peaking out beneath the tight black material of his under layer for no one but Laxus to look at with every twist and stretch from the Mindbender, the Lightning Slayer couldn't figure out.

It had been quiet for fifteen minutes. Freed, Bix and Ever somewhere behaving thanks to Freed and his rigid infallible love of information. Laxus was completely distracted by Kaleb's impression of the laziest feline in Joya so the two powerhouse men were also relatively quiet. Between the soft absent noises coming from between the Pradesh's lips and the odd grumble coming from Laxus at his own attempts to stop the purrs vibrating all the way down to his core.

Laxus had no idea because he is an unfortunately dense and stubborn mother fucker but Kaleb was nurturing the seeds of their bond before the big blond idiot had even realized they were mates. It wasn't hard for Kaleb to make the connection. He had been around Cristoff and Emzadi their whole lives together to know exactly what to look for in a mate bond between dragons and with the thoughts ricocheting around Laxus' skull, he had no doubts that is exactly what was happening between the two of them.

Kaleb's voice was like the finest suede under his fingertips. Pleasant and soothing but not fragile or weak. A perfect soothing balance. "Everything okay over there?"

Laxus could feel the smile oozing from Kaleb's handsome face and the devious mirth shining in his sharp observing lavender eyes. The quiet hunger, controlled so easily within his muscular body in frustrating ways for his yellow-haired counterpart, was driving Laxus absolutely insane as he gritted out through clenched jaw. "Peachy fuckin' keen."

The slow curl took hold on Kaleb's smile in addition to the slight nod of his head as it turned back to a thick hardcover book written in some squiggly looking language the Lightning dragon couldn't begin to name. "Riiight." Unconvinced and drawn, the word was made to seem bored but it only served to quirk Laxus' top lip in a flash of a sneer.

The expression was more due to his own frustration at the way his stomach flipped like a teen at the short response. It was more annoying than he would ever admit out loud how unnaturally attracted he was to sound of Kaleb's voice. Even more alluring than his languid sunny shiny voice was that damned winning grin that crossed the charm of Cristoff's easy smile with the crooked grin of mischief that Vander sported nearly all the time. It only made his nostrils flared out of sheer contempt with his own involuntary reactions to the gorgeous man.

Another ten minutes passed and the Fairy was starting to get antsy. His knee had been bouncing for gods know how long while he managed to read all about the celestial movements over Joya all the way back from when Illium took the throne. He was having an extremely hard time figuring how this was going to help them against a real live god. Laxus was pretty sure he would have the same feeling about any subject put in front of him right now.

"It probably won't." It was light and easy but started a spark in the Lightning Slayer.

A snap resounded through the stacks of books on the empty second floor of the library. Laxus had hit his breaking point as he slammed the priceless historical text and shoved both his hands into his hair like his large hands held any power against Kaleb's Mindbender magic. "Fuck, I wish you didn't do that."

Warm laughter sounded from across him. "Not the first person to tell me that, sparky."

There was a pause before Kaleb pulled himself from his reading to look over at the up and coming guildmaster, his voice quiet and tentative. "I wouldn't have to do it if you'd actually talk to me."

His tongue clicked as he let out a breathy chuckle, his steely eyes fixed on the ceiling and the hieroglyphs lining it. "You tellin' me there was an option for you?" The humor in his deep baritone skirting the edges of his words in spite of the tight clench to his jaw making the muscle twitch. Kaleb noticed and found the action sexy in a brusque wholly manly show.

"Ah, right," putting his open book on the low table between them, "I forget you know all whole hell of a lot more than you let on. But you have to admit, you are a fucking moron when it comes to emotions." A toothless smile lifted the corner of his mouth as he stared unabashed at Laxus' face.

Offended but wrongfully so, Laxus rolled his eyes at the dig before speaking directly to Kaleb with his arms firmly crossed over his chest and his lips set in a straight line. A hilarious sight as he sat crossed legged on a pile of deep plum and bright turquoise pillows. "Fuck you and fuck you." He didn't appreciate the double dig and his dragon didn't appreciate it coming from the platinum haired man specifically. It only served to add to Laxus' ire that his dragon was becoming more and more present around Kaleb the longer they stayed around one another.

"Take a break from reality for a minute and breathe."

Offhand and careless, Laxus responded. "Easy for you to say."

A hardness took hold of the pleasant timbre to rip all of the Slayer's attention to Kaleb's unreadable face. "I saw the vision same as you, Laxus. Those are my brothers and my sister too so get the fuck off your pity fuckstick and act like the master of Fairy Tail. Or at least act like you."

Now frustrated and anxious for some reason, his fingers flexed and reached for the Boscan only to realize they were too far apart. Kaleb was out of reach. "What does that fucking mean…"

Leaning forward on his elbows resting on top of the stone table, the same hard tone was present but the beginnings of that smile, the charming mischievous one that did things to Laxus, started curling his lips. "When have you ever settled for anything in your life?"

Confused and angry was not the best emotional combination for the man with a less than stellar record with it. He didn't know what this had to do with anything. He didn't know why Kaleb was being purposefully complicated. He absolutely hated beating around the bush.

A fist. One single fist hit the thick stone table top to send a hairline crack from beneath his hand all the way to Kaleb. It only made him think about his own cracked table at home. Home. Home was so goddamned far and his little slice of home was currently gallivanting across the Spirit World with Zen, the former professional murderer and man of carnage."Jesus fucking fuck. I hate this. I hate that I can't do anything. I hate that stupid bastard for drawing Blondie into this and I fucking hate that we've got a whole shit load of shit to deal with and all I keep thinking about is how good it's gonna feel to fuck you finally." Exasperated and huffy, Laxus' fists clenched even tighter before meeting Kaleb's knowing smug face. He hadn't realized what he just admitted until the words had already spewed from his mouth in a spiteful vomiting of the wrong emotions.

Kaleb was drinking in the rare sight of the floundering and awkward Dragon Slayer as he tried to backpedal with little success. It tasted better than the sweetest revenge really. Laxus Dreyar was a man of few words on his best of days with a penchant for loose women and one night stands so hearing that he was the object of his sexual frustration admittedly felt more amazing than anything thus far in their relationship. The crass words themselves were a reminder that this man in particular was all male, all alpha. It was going to be one wild ride with someone like Laxus for a mate. Literally it would seem.

It took the towering Guildmaster less than five seconds to sit himself on the table directly in front of Laxus, his thick thighs caging either side of Laxus' slightly trembling body. He knew it was from the strain he was putting on his muscles to keep them apart and not from any fear or shyness. The height of the table put his pelvis right where the blond dragon slayer's shirt was stretched too tight over his wide chest and Kaleb relished in the abrupt silence as a result of his bold move. A calculated move that had a purpose to serve.

Leaning forward to rest his elbows on his wide spread knees, their noses were practically touching before he watched the infamous Thunder God retreat an inch with wide eyes and rosy cheeks. This was going to be fun. "You wanna fuck me, Laxus?" The way he said it made him seem far more serious than his position gave up but Kaleb could feel his own body react to the cat and mouse game with a fire he hadn't felt in a very long time. Instant and all-consuming.

A thick gulp sounded, Laxus' adam's apple bobbing before his hand moved to run through his own hair to ease the uncomfortable arousal twisting his whole body up. The move was interrupted by his elbow bumping into Kaleb's leg and before he could pull away, a lightning fast hand reached out to take his in a strong grip that had his dragon gnashing for a whole other reason. "I- You-...fuck." Fairy Tail's next Master was genuinely speechless. His thoughts were a garbled mess and absolutely every one of them focused on the man in front of him poised to pounce. All the way from the reciprocated dirty words spoken so easily to the sultry way he said his name.

Kaleb's smile curled impossibly further up his face while his thumb made lazy back and forth passes over the pounding pulse at Laxus' wrist to pull another rumbling purr from deep in his chest. The warm laughter that fell from his lips at the sound pulled a much deeper growl out of Laxus and Kaleb's eyes snapped to the stormy pools that decidedly held the fire of a basic need to assert himself with thoughts focused on the singular goal of dominating. He had pushed the dragon part of his mate's soul to the point of snapping. Unlike Lucy and Bickslow, Laxus and Kaleb were not newbies. Kaleb had the power to stop this at any moment and Laxus wasn't about to actually fuck him in the middle of a war. Or maybe he was but neither of them could afford it right now.

Since all Laxus was thinking about was asserting himself, Kaleb was actually surprised when the brute held no reservations about crawling over him, forcing Kaleb back to lean on his elbow to land chest to chest with sex incarnate himself. He couldn't bite back the moan when he felt Laxus move his knee between his legs, splitting them apart as it nestled against his bulge. He really didn't want to move anyway. This was about the most ideal turn out he could have asked for.

"I'll do more than fuck you, pretty boy." This was new and exciting. Laxus went from blushing schoolgirl to total dom in an impressively short amount of time and the crooked fanged smile coupled with the look of sheer desire to his eyes had Kaleb panting. His chest was actually heaving from the single sinful sentence. The gravel in his dragon's voice was absolutely the sexiest thing to exist in Kaleb's world. "You won't be able to leave the bed when we're through." By the time he had finished, Laxus had pinned Kaleb on his back, their lips just shy of actually touching. Kaleb was grinding down against the hard muscle of the Lightning Slayer's thigh and Laxus was running the end of his nose over the curve of Kaleb's neck, inhaling the sharp musky scent that had him licking his lips in anticipation to tease the Mindbender even further. The action pulled his fair-headed mate's gaze to the pearly white canines and Laxus watched with the satisfaction of victory as he heard the distinct sound of a dry swallow. His breath was a delicious tease up Kaleb's throat as his lips ghosted over his tanned skin with every husky growl. "I know how much you want me. I can smell it. Feel it." Making a point to press his leg further against Kaleb's hard cock to draw another low moan from one of the most powerful mages in all of Ishgar. He wasn't lying on either account. Kaleb's scent had grown unbearably musky and thick, permeating his thoughts in intoxicating flashes and there was no way of avoiding how hard the Boscan got under his body.

White Sea's Guildmaster was about to show alpha pup what a power bottom looked like. The hand pinned under Laxus' switched from a submissive soft grip to one that rivalled his own as the other palmed the thick muscle of the dragon slayer's ass to force him off balance. It gave him the perfect chance to flip their positions in one forward motion to have them land in Laxus' pile of cushions. Kaleb straddled built hips before leaning over Laxus' nearly snarling frame to suck his earlobe into his mouth before letting his voice wash over his temperamental dragon. "I'll make riding cock look so good, you'll want to try it yourself, Laxus."

A split second froze for the Mindbender as Laxus' thoughts became a bright neon sign of intention. That impatient shit had every intention of biting him. Right here. Right now. In the middle of the oldest library in Joya.

"YOU BETTER BE FUCKIN' WITH ME RIGHT NOW OR SO HELP ME-"

And just like that, the mood-killing sound of Bickslow Pradesh screaming his head off about a sweet little tidbit Cetus dryly delivered about Lucy before vanishing without another word to leave the Raijinshu in utter shock.

Both Kaleb and Laxus blinked before one of them got them upright and the other moved their hands from a grip hanging onto control into a loose hand hold that could have been passed as an over affectionate friendly gesture if the two doing it weren't flushed and still a little short of breath. Mindless in their actions, the pair sprinted up the steps as Bickslow immediately grabbed Kaleb's shirt, the material wrinkling in his tight grip while the babies trembled nervously behind him. "She doesn't know. She doesn't know her dad isn't her dad and now she has a new dad-"

Unhelpfully, Freed interjected with an absent tone. "Technically two new fathers with Ambassador Pradesh in the picture."

Earning a deep roll of from the Seith's eyes before he continued his dramatic rant. "-that absolutely has to know that her dads," turning to glare at Freed, "all her dads," his eyes back on his brother's to miss the droll look on the Rune Mage's face, "are not her dad. None of them were related. Her life was a lie."

Horny and unhappy about it, Laxus' jaw snapped in painful resounding waves with each harsh word. "What the fuck do you mean her dad isn't her dad? Blondie's a Heartfilia through and through." The stern line of his brows and the constant flexing of his muscles displaying his hold on the control keeping his fury back.

For what, Bickslow just couldn't fathom. Cetus had just informed them that Lucy was the by-product of an ancient being so old and unknown, even the Spirit King hadn't known until Draco started doing his own research on the bonds forming within his daughter to nearly everyone she touched. That lost magic influences the rest of her soul to make it pure golden energy and that lost magic is what facilitated the contract between Vander and she. It's what made Lucy's magic more powerful when she had a stake in the fight and she had no idea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~WAIT WHAT? Yeah, I've been holding on to that for a long time but couldn't get the words right. I started this chapter and scrapped it so many times before I finally got it down. I hope y'all liked it!
> 
> Seriously. o.o I live for y'all so let me know if we are still vibing strong. ^.^ ~


	19. Step Nineteen: Calm before the Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~AN UPDATE ON TIME! Yeah, yeah, I know I'm trash but like...here is some fun stuff before the big showdown and (hopeful) return to Magnolia.
> 
> Fun Fact: I had to type the word family at least 5 times because that motherfucker suddenly looked like a completely ridiculous made-up word and I had a little bit of a crisis over it.~

It took the Bickslow and Laxus record time to get back to their suite in the hopes that Lucy would already be there. That somehow she would be happily humming along, barefooted and smiling with impossible honeyed eyes filled with her effervescent light. The former was solely focused on the fact that the unknown heritage actually made a lot of sense given her history of kidnapping and victory in spite of the odds against them and the latter chastising himself for getting so distracted with his fucking delectable mate and missing hearing the information as it came from its direct source. Not that Laxus didn't believe his team without a doubt, he just thought maybe it would hit a little harder. He heard the news. He processed it. He moved on. Lucy wasn't the daughter of Jude and Layla Heartfilia. She was the daughter of Layla Heartfilia and some random ancient something or other with an apparent soft spot for beautiful blonde married women. She was the only being living with this unknown lost magic they didn't have a clue where start on understanding it. As if there was one more thing she needed to try and juggle. Bickslow could see the evidence his best friend's uncharacteristic acceptance was blind to. The Seith didn't have to just accept the sudden blow at face value. He could see the effects of her unique magic in everything she did. The unlikely bonds she forged. The impossible resilience and infallible faith she held in her nakama and anyone else she came in contact with. It made sense to him she would be this amazing one of a kind miracle of a being because he'd always felt that way about her. It explained why her soul was so receptive and active. It explained why people were naturally drawn to her; why her golden soul was so present in her day to day life. Searching for the next unfortunate, usually left behind and tainted, soul to wash her warm brand of forgiveness and acceptance over. He'd watched silently over the guild and saw the way her light brought the dark at the root of Gajeel's out and even lightened the inky black to a deep navy. And the shit she did for Cobra's soul-listening. And Mira and Freed. Gods, the list just went on and on.

The blunette was sure Laxus was going to pass out with the unhealthy way he was breathing too slow seemingly by force but paid it little mind as two powerful mages of Fairy Tail came through the main archway to their suite searching for her golden silky hair with opposing looks of open worry and tight indecipherable indifference. Both had looks on their face resembling out of breath parents searching for a lost child in a crowd rather than the two young attractive kidless men they were to pull a very concerned look from the lounging Lunar Slayer talking into a comm lacrima before saying his goodbyes to whoever it was and a passing snarky remark from the Shadowquip about what had mom and dad so worked up currently trying to get Cristoff to agree to join him on an impromptu trip to the Spirit World since he and his little soul-bonded shithead didn't have to be apart and he was bored without her. Cris told him for what had to be the tenth time it was an extremely bad idea that could get them in serious trouble. Like actual serious trouble that not a single person could save them from at the hand of the Spirit King and Draco and by extension, Nurem. None of which he had any inclination of rubbing the wrong way.

Together, Laxus and Bix each took their own Pradesh to stare at, asking in a weird mix of angry impatience from the Lightning slayer and hopeful optimism from the Seith in a combined rush to create the most audibly uncomfortable harmony of voices thus far today and both Cristoff and Van had to listen to Siwa's 'spooky-wiggy' voice as the blonde in question liked to say, "Is Lucy here?"

Being the shit he was, Vander looked over his shoulders one at a time in a slow pull to either side before drawling languidly with a flippant gesture of his suddenly floppy wrist, the limp appendage waving the wisps of his magic in lazy swirls. "Unless starshine learned total invisibility and a way around our mystical soul-bond, no. She doesn't appear to be here."

Having the sense to be able to gauge a situation, the empath raven-haired slayer smacked his little brother's stomach to at least knock some sense into his lithe body before asking what was wrong. Their meeting with the King and subsequently the God of War had been forgotten in whatever had them worked up so it must have been pretty important for them to push it the wayside.

An hour later, everyone was sitting in an uncomfortable silence as they waited for Lucy to return. Except for Vander. Vander was trying to catch the koi fish ambling from clear pool of water to pool of water before rolling over on his back to start counting the number of times he heard Laxus sigh impatiently from his place beside Kaleb. The white blond was clearly over whatever kept his breakfast canoodling somewhat low-key as his hand rested firmly on the thick bouncing muscle of Laxus' thigh to still the nervous gesture without resistance or acknowledgment from either mage. Freed, Ever and Cristoff were reading over the armfuls of books they may or may not have technically stolen from the library to see if any of them had any information to help with their upcoming fight to the death while Bickslow settled into an unnerving calm with the babies all settled around his relaxed frame. They had all agreed the news would be best coming from him seeing as how Laxus had little tact. His eyes had been shut for the past twenty minutes with his arms firmly crossed over his chest but hadn't fallen asleep. He was just...waiting. Waiting to deliver another ill-timed blow to her existence.

In the short amount of time given with the life-changing tidbit, he had gone over hundreds of scenarios in his head. How he should tell her. How she might react. If it changed anything. Nothing had changed for him but he wasn't Lucy and it wasn't his whole perception of life that was about to be shattered. After he had gone through all the possibilities, this little tick in his brain started thinking about just what his mate and his brother were doing locked away in the extremely private piece of Spirit World for this long. His own unwanted thoughts made him internalize and try to deal with the jealousy right now, head on because there was no way he was going to let it mess anything up for any single one of them. This wasn't the time or place for such a ridiculous notion.

Out of nowhere, all heads snapped to Lucy and Bickslow's room fast enough to appear painful as the distinct sound of crashing followed by Lucy's unbidden laughter and a wholly male grunt of either pain or surprise before her melodious voice filled the space and eased the tension of the room enough to ease the rigid posture all of them had suddenly developed. "Oh my stars, I'm so sorry." She didn't sound genuine in her apology but the Celestial mage was honest to a fault so they took it as is. "I'd ask if you're alright but I know you can take the pain." There was a pause before she cheerfully added, "Plus, that was actually a really good landing." Her mate could hear the slight undertones of her own disbelief.

Zen's deep voice was even. "That wasn't a landing." And by the sounds of it, the older Pradesh wasn't wrong in his assessment.

Her's was undeterred. Joyous even. "Sure it was. You landed on your ass and I landed on you. Sounds like a landing to me," before the two stepped out into the main room to pull gasps from Evergreen and Freed, choking noises from Cristoff and Kaleb, one loud cackle of a laugh from Vander and two looks of utter and definitive accusation from Bickslow and Laxus; Bix's on Lucy knowing full well her newfound penchant for fighting, hitting way too close to home with the similarities between her and her pinkette best friend, and Laxus' on Zen because he was Laxus Dreyar and his little sister didn't pick fights. Or at least, she didn't use to. Between the fresh blooming bruises coloring the whole left side Zen's face and spanning from Lucy's shoulder across her chest and the slight limp where the Archangel mage was favoring his right side, the signs of their brawl were purely physical as they watched Lucy spin to walk backward in front of the towering professional fighter and address Zen with a chipper little smile, her hand reaching up to pat the undamaged side of his face cheekily. "At least I remembered where the bed was. We could have missed that little bit of cushioning."

"We?" Referring to his freefall from above that stunted his lungs only to have her land on top of him and his definitely bruise ribs with an unreadable grimace that went unnoticed by Lucy. More than likely she was ignoring the obvious look that neared icy cold.

"Okay, you could have landed on the floor."

"Cushioning?" Referring to the fact that the 'cushioning' was absolutely useless in making said freefall any better. A stone bed was a stone bed no matter how you dressed it.

Stilling in front of him as she opened her mouth to say something before closing it, looking down at her bare feet in thought before lifting her head and offering a helpful piece of advice as she acted out her own half-sarcastic, half-well-intentioned instructions. "Next time, I'll let you brace yourself like this first," before demonstrating her usual crouch when she gate-hopped to help her land without hurting herself with her arms out to the side as if ready to tuck and roll at a moments notice, "that way it won't matter if there isn't something soft to catch you." Again, her voice remained bright as she beamed up at the unconvinced ex-gladiator.

Turning to finally give her greetings to the rest of the gang, they stopped dead in her throat as she took in the varying looks on the faces of her nakama. Nothing good could come of any single one of them but putting them all together in the oppressing silence had a chill running down her spine. Confusion twisted her brows but her lips remained in an upturned curve before crossing to stand behind Bickslow, her fingers running through his hair as she posed the question to the room as a whole. "What's going on?"

The silence that followed made her uncomfortable to the point of physically squirming, her smile dropping completely as she looked to Bickslow for an explanation. The open look of her too-wide deep chocolate eyes sending an unwanted feeling of dread through Bix's whole body.

Taking her hand and bringing the back of it to his lips, he murmured out a soft 'I love you' before guiding her around the cushions for her to sit next to him, her eyes expectant and brimming with her internal struggle to repeat her previous inquiry. She trusted the Seith to tell her what was wrong regardless of how bad whatever what was going on actually was. Her dark eyes flicked to Zen's, still worried the big guy would disappear and she'd forget him, as he sat down on the other side of mohawked Pradesh before focusing on the red circles twisting inside her mates eyes in lazy circles. Her voice held all the emotion clearly displayed on her face. "Bixy? You're kind of freaking me out."

Inhaling a bracing breath to bolster his own courage, he turned his body to square with hers and held her small hands in his own. His tone was gentle but firm as a smile split his lips to ease some of her anxiety. "Cetus overheard Draco and Loke talking. He was under the impression that neither of them was going to tell you until after we left Joya but he seems to think you deserve to know and I agree." She withdrew her hands only to move to sit on her foot and move closer to her mate as his smooth voice soothed her worry before it had the chance to build up into something she couldn't handle. "Jude wasn't your biological dad, Lu."

Her face went blank as an absent 'what' left her lips as a gut-reaction she couldn't have swallowed down even if she wanted to and the whole room tensed at her unnatural stillness before his words processed and a million questions flooded her brain at once. Jude wasn't her father? Did her mom cheat on him? Who was her dad if Jude wasn't? Why would Draco keep it from her? Or Loke? She trusted them so why didn't they trust her?

Sensing the way she was getting overwhelmed within her own thoughts, her gears smoking from the rapid speeds they were turning, Bickslow continued onward to get as much information out for her to process and get as much of a picture as the rest of them had on the subject. "It doesn't have to change anything, hun. You still had the childhood you had. Jude still tried made up for the shortcomings of it before he died and you forgave him. It doesn't change anything about you." His face grew slightly uncomfortable, one that Lucy particularly didn't like but she held her tongue. The little blonde didn't trust herself to not point her anger and confusion at the wrong person. "Your dad was...He could still be- We aren't totally-"

Laxus interrupted the stuttering Seith under his breath, "Jesus fuck Bix." Making sure to meet his sister's gaze, the look in it making him itchy from its foreign twisted emotion, with his own holding absolutely nothing out of ordinary from its usual unreadable expression. "Your dad's some really old, really powerful thing and you are the only known lovechild of his. Apparently." His even delivery and the fact that he wasn't pussyfooting around her feelings actually made it easier for her to hear. Like Bickslow had explicitly said to her, this changed nothing for her older brother. She was still Blondie and he was still Sparklers. They just had a whole other can of what the actual fuck to deal with after all this was over.

They all watched her in their own ways. Most of the beefier company watching her face openly looking for any indications that she was taking the news badly in the stoic look of neutrality stuck on her usually vibrant expressive features while Ever's eyes shined with her own emotion for the blonde, Freed tried to not intrude but found himself checking on Lucy more often than he was progressing his research which left Kaleb to scan her thoughts. Unfortunately for him, she had gone catatonic. No thoughts. No reactions. Just...nothing. It wasn't the worst possible outcome but it wasn't on the good end of the spectrum either.

Another ten minutes passed of uneasy silence with her mate rubbing his thumb across the back of her damaged hands from her fight with Zen when the Archangel mage himself picked the small woman up by her shoulders in a rough move that had his blunette younger brother and red-tipped youngest brother bristling on impulse and Laxus standing straight up only to be forced back down by a rough tug from the Mindbender currently gaging the situation for any indication that this was about to head somewhere worse. It wasn't. Kaleb knew that but the rest of his little family away home didn't have the same reassurances he had but they needed to learn to trust Zen. He might be just the person to help the Celestial Slayer out of her shock.

The leftover pain from the insane battle between she and Zen had her sucking in a sharp breath at his unintentionally rough treatment before her forehead wrinkled from annoyance. Her hand jabbed into one of his still-fresh bruises on his chest in retaliation as she hissed out one long sarcastic, "Oww."

The towering brute remained mostly unfazed save the little twitch to the corner of his eye before speaking in a tone that held little room for arguments on anyone's part. "Snap the fuck out of it then. This doesn't change anything. You're still exactly the same person The only thing you need to worry about is how to use this to your advantage. You were born, raised and lived your life not knowing what the fuck you were up until this point and you managed to make it this far. Focus on the shit that matters now, sternchen."

She glared at him with a childish pout and her arms crossed over her chest despite still being suspended in the air by means of the lost Pradesh's massive arms. "Says you. I'm the freak that's half...half…" Stopping to look over to Bickslow for help, he offered her a sad sort of shrug with an earnest crooked smile to convey his apologies before her tired gaze met Zen's hard glare, "half whatever the fuck I am."

"You're still you, my child." The instant she heard Draco's smooth voice, her head snapped to the Celestial Dragon having pride enough to not hold any regret on his stern face for his original decision to keep the news from her. "Which is why Loke and I thought it would be best to wait until after you fought Anhur to tell you."

Scrambling from the grip holding her up to land without issue, Lucy's shoulder shoved at Zen's arm to stand in front of her dragon, one of many father-figures and mentors in her life and finally crumbled a little bit. Her shoulders hunched at a weird angle as her head fell forward, the loose buns she twisted earlier finally falling free in a cascade around her to hide the tears in her eyes. "You don't trust me." The little beauty made it seem more like a fact than the question she originally intended.

Large reassuring hands smoothed the odd angles of her hair in a show of affection before just the corner of his lip lifted in a barely seen smile. His voice was hard as usual but the soft look in his sharp gaze gave away the careful emotion he held for her. "I chose you because I knew I could trust you. I chose to make you my child. I had no intention of ever passing my magic on. You changed that by simply being you and you'll continue to be my daughter for next millennia."

"Is that where the golden scales came from?" The question was easy as she lifted her head to take in his much needed fatherly touch while she felt so detached from the ground. She was not expecting to see the confusion in her spirit's expression when she did.

"Golden scales? What golden scales?" His voice tight with what could have been anticipation. Excitement even.

Hesitant only for a minute, her round eyes met Zen's for a moment before turning back to Draco with a tilt of her head. "The scales from when I fought angelface over there. They were unreal, Draco. They felt completely different from my Dragon Force and they were awesome."

"I'm sorry, I must have heard that wrong." Laxus was beyond unhappy at all the new aspects of his little sister's magic. "Why the hell where you two fighting and what the fuck does that mean? She's got another Force now?"

Lucy stuck her tongue out at the grumpy man before taking hold of Draco's forearm to drag them both over to Zen before dropping his hand and making a 'come at me' motion to the Archangel mage with an eager smile splitting her lips that bordered psychotic. She was excited to show them her new scales. They were fucking awesome.

"I don't think that's necessary," was his easy response as he closed his eyes with a calm focus and brushed the side of her face with his fingertips. Her pretty golden scales followed the light touch before receding when it got too far away and disappearing altogether when he removed it. He did the same down her left arm to have the scales pop up and trail along just as they had on her cheek.

Completely taken with the action and Lucy's reaction in kind, Bickslow and Vander crawled over the back of the cushions to flank either side of Lucy and peer over her shoulders. Both sets of warm eyes keen on watching the mesmerizing ministrations while the Seith's voice filled with quiet awe, his eyes faintly glowing to see how her soul was reacting to the change. "Don't stop whatever you're doing." Because whatever his brother was doing was having an impact on her soul like nothing he's ever seen before. There were so many questions, too many to ever know the answers to. What he did know was that Zen's own tarnished golden soul shined a little brighter and Lucy's grew bigger. Warmer. The tendrils of her gilded soul reached out to him, reached into his own being, and wrapped him in warm reassurance from the inside out. He relished in it and let it soothe away his unwarranted fears and doubts before he felt it leave him like a wistful gentle smoke. Where he thought he would feel empty after, he only felt her. He only felt his Lucy.

Kaleb was fascinated by the exchange as well for a whole other reason; Zen wasn't actively doing anything. He wasn't trying to force it out of her and she wasn't thinking about it at all. Moving closer to the growing crowd of mages surrounding the pair, he was about to say just that when Draco's voice sounded instead. "What you all are witnessing is something that hasn't happened in centuries. This is the strength of the ties between an Archangel and their Celestial mage. We may not know what exactly your real father gave you but I know what this is." Clearing his throat as he cut through where both Freed and Evergreen had also been drawn to the magnetizing pull that was Lucy and her magic as a result of the close proximity to Zen's own ancient magic. "I'm going to clarify that this under no circumstances takes away from the mating between you and Lucy and if anything," pointedly making eye contact with Bickslow's own faintly glowing eyes, "it will add to it. There are many aspects to take into account and I assure you, all will be known in due time but for right now, I'm asking you to trust me. To trust her," his eyes warming as they shot to Lucy's bright open eyes before moving back to Bickslow as if there wasn't anyone else in the room. "Nothing comes before your mating with Lucy. Nothing comes between soulmates." The ferocity within the concrete statement made the situation a whole hell of a lot better for one Bickslow Pradesh. He really hadn't been worried about it but hearing it said out loud with such fervor was a much-needed boost.

"Thank every single one of the gods." Vander's voice was filled with his usual light-hearted mirth as he slung an arm around his silent Seith brother with a wide toothy grin to pin Cristoff with his deep wine eyes. "I was really worried I was going to have to put our little bet on hold, moonbeam. I'm really rooting for you Bixy-bo."

Cristoff was having an easier time accepting everything. Though he could feel that his draconian-sibling at the core of her dragon soul was upset at the prospect of having to share, it accepted Zen as a worthy match. His best guess was that the golden scales were its way of letting that be known. Or maybe he was just drawing things together that only sort of made sense. He certainly didn't claim to be an expert. Instead of dwelling on that, he gave Lucy a winning smile and wink before easily countering his baby brother. "Yeah if anything, this just sealed my win. Might as well hand over the ten thousand right now."

"As if I'd ever admitted defeat when victory was so close at hand."

"You don't admit defeat when it's hit you in the dick and fucked you good up the ass." Snickering started filling the massive room at the turn of phrase.

"Nothing wrong with getting fucked good up the ass every now and then." A cheeky grin lit Vander's handsome face as he gave Bix's ribs a hard elbow and an eyebrow waggle to ask 'am I right or am I right'. "Eh? Eh."

The action pulled both females attention as Evergreen's brows shot to her hairline at the implication that her teammate would know what that felt like and Lucy's went passed her hairline as a shit-eating grin crossed her devious little pout because oh. the things she could do with that. "Sounds like you have some experience in getting fucked, babe? Care to share with the class?"

"The class doesn't want to know." Both Kaleb and Laxus snapped in harmonious baritones to kill all the good fun as Lucy and Vander deflated a little and Cristoff and Bickslow practically melted to the floor with raucous laughter.

Draco and Zen held matching disapproving looks on their hardened faces as they looked over the scene before the older of the two just barely ducked his head towards Freed's to ask in a hushed whisper with a neutral tone, "Have you done any research on the barrier around their fight?"

The Rune Mage blushed because he hadn't even thought of it. He had been so preoccupied with trying to figure the people they were involved with out, he hadn't even thought about simply taking the barrier completely out of the picture so it would no longer be just Lucy and Cristoff fighting the seemingly honorable if aggressive god. If he could take it down, the odds would go in their favor to the extreme with so many indomitable mages on their side. Surely they could win without him losing anyone he cared about. Turning his head of long green hair to give his thanks for the ingenious bit of help, he kept searching the room only to find Draco gone. Brushing the odd exchange off, he went back to the stacks of books from the Thoth to see if fate had a hand in everything they did by means of his grabbing of something that could help him figure out a way through the barrier.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Three more days until the big one and Bickslow had been slowly descending into the madness that was Lucy Heartfilia. For four days she, Cristoff and Zen had been doing his older brothers version of training which looked an awful lot like the ex-gladiator whaling on them for the first of them followed by the two slayers's exclusively whaling on each other for most of yesterday. Today was supposed to be a round-robin style of random fights to try and get everyone prepared for the insanity that was their fight with Anhur save Freed and Evergreen. The male of the two wanted to finish reading a particularly helpful book on the basics of Joyan defense magic hoping to find a loophole and the female blatantly and loudly refusing to participate. In her defense, Lucy had taken to wearing that really fucking intense armor of her Draco Stardress and it was standing up Laxus' lightning surprisingly well. Too well it would seem in their ruthless trainer's opinion by means of the male holding back.

"What the fuck are you doing, dragon?" It was commanding and rough but in the way Zen's voice seemed to naturally burst from his lips.

Gritting his teeth down against the sharp tips as his steely eyes shot to the towering beast calmly pacing the border of Zen's own private sparring area where the majority of them were waiting for their turn; watching the two fair-headed siblings with keen interest. No one said anything out loud but Laxus and Lucy had been at each other's throats since he had made an offhand comment about the similarities between the Celestial Mage and her mother's choice in multiple partners at dinner the first night after finding out about her father's side of the family. He played it off as an observation but Lucy heard the accusation behind it and quite frankly didn't care for it. Unfortunately for him, that made her side of their no-holds-barred spar weigh a bit heavier with motivation to break bones than his.

Sucking in a breath the same moment his teeth bared to his little sister and the fire burning hot in her faintly glowing eyes, he realized the only way the two of them were going to get over this was the dragon way. His attention was solely on Lucy now as he took note of all the changes to her fighting style in the time they had been on this carnival ride from hell. He let his own pride in her fuel his fight as he looked back on the first of their training matches. She was too wary and lacked confidence; stayed to the outskirts and kept her distance. Not at all like she was acting right now. It may have been the emotion behind every head on attack, every well-aimed swing of the massive greatsword that was Caelum that made her so bent on drawing his blood. She hadn't even called on Scutum as a defense. A purely offensive move that served to create a tick on her brother's forehead at her newfound set of steel balls when it came to fighting him in particular. He was Laxus-fucking-Dreyar for Mavis' sake.

Lucy wasn't even tired as she gripped the two-handed version of her silver key in both her armored hands and pushed all the buttons she could to get him to come at her finally. "What's the problem, Thunder God? Having trouble keeping up?" Antagonistic and borderline hostile in nature, her smile turned mischievous as she continued egging him on, knowing full well he was holding back against her and it only served to add lightning shaped wood to her hate-fire. "I know you can do better than this or are you too worried I'll kick your ass into next week."

"Final warning, Blondie, quit while you're fucking ahead." His own tone was seething the ire he so obviously felt at her teasing tactics and it only threw fuel on her battle-rage.

Her thick pauldrons shifted as she stretched her shoulders and shot back, "Final warning, Sparkles, put your Force on or I'll make you put it on."

Instead of finding mirth in her eyes, he found they only held the promise of her words and it stoked his stubborn ego enough to have him refuse to even think about giving her the satisfaction of having one fucking scale pop out. Which he told her as much in a hissed, "Fuck you and your little valkyrie costume," before flash-stepping beside her to land a hard punch to the plate covering her left thigh, shattering it to bits as her other leg instantly shot up to crush the cartilage of his nose with her armor-plated knee, the impact cracking the solid metal kneecap and sending Laxus reeling backward with crimson drops spraying. She wouldn't deny his punch hurt like the dickens and that her leg threatened to give but before she could give him a chance to collect himself and stop the blood from gushing from his face, she used the massive spirit-sword as a crutch to land another solid kick square to his frame. This time her kick was only successful in forcing him to move his own right leg back to brace himself. No way was he about to let her beat him back.

She felt the change in static more than anything else and knew she had very limited time to get him to pull out the stops before he unleashed a charged fist strong enough to knock the Dress from her body.

Picking up on the sliver of panic starting to split her confidence, Laxus' smile grew toothy as if to show off the set off his much larger set of fangs in a draconic show of dominance. His voice was cocky and bold as he swung his heavy fistwithout restraint. "Hope you got something else quick cause I'm about to end this."

"Not likely, brother dearest," was her cryptic response as his fist connected with something more solid than her armor only to realize in his own magic's flash, she had summoned Scutum to take the full brunt of his attack before sending both silver keys back.

"Put on your Dragon force." A quiet demand through heavy breaths, still in the crouch she had been in to make sure none of Laxus' magic hit her. It didn't mean that particular hit didn't rattle her to her core.

"Not gonna happen." Another armored fist came at his face and without hesitation, he dodged the incoming blow before she could damage his face any more than she already had. If he wasn't pulled into her own maelstrom of feeling, he might have been proud of that little tricky move.

Unrelenting in her own blows, she ducked another of his own right hooks as she gritted out her demands once more. "Put it on." In the heat of her aggression, she full force barreled into the brickhouse of a mage, the unforgiving metal plates of her shoulders digging into his ribs with the aim of at least cracking a few before he let out a resounding growl and forced her off him by means of grabbing the shining visor covering her forehead and shoving it into her skull until her grip released and their breathing was ragged, a trickle of blood starting to drip from beneath the now crushing piece of armor just shy of her dangerously slitted eye. She paid it no mind at all.

Lucy dropped Draco's Stardress in an aggravated roar to leave her wearing a bright blue sports bra and a pair of padded leggings she started the day in. "Stop fucking with me, asshole."

"Stop being a fucking moron and maybe I will." His instant response as the two prowled around the other.

Kaleb had seen many fights in his lifetime and knew this one was needed if they were going to have a chance at a solidified team and Bickslow had zero intentions of getting in the middle of that. He played mediator once and survived. That was enough. The youngest of them was lounged back throwing in his blatant favoring for the curvier of the two while adding little training tidbits to his older mahogany haired brother. Zen found his assessments astute and helpful since Vander was there through her short Dragon Slayer training and held a similar magic. Turns out the two had a lot to talk about and Zen actually enjoyed the little shits antics when they weren't directed at him. Or at least, if they ever were aimed at him. Van didn't have a death wish yet.

Lucy's low threat pulled the attention back to their brutal battle. "Put. It. On."

"Is that what you want? You want me to destroy you before you even have a shot at the god?"

In a flash of gold, her own Dragon Force took over. The speed at which she did the move took everyone by surprise but before anyone could register what her goal was, she was gone and not two seconds later appeared roughly 30 feet above him ready to land a mean full-powered kick from the sky.

Laxus had barely enough time to turn the key of his own Dragon Force as his crossed forearms took the full power of the kick with ease. Anticipating and even banking on the easy block, Lucy used his arms for her own gain before twisting her body around his neck in a chokehold between the hardened muscle of her thigh and calf. There was nothing that would loosen her grip short of death. He insulted her mother. The woman who sang her lullabies to help her sleep. Who gave her the amazing magic that allowed her to keep her spirit family together and happy. The magic that saved Laxus and their guild too many times for him to think any dig, intentional of otherwise, wouldn't land him in this exact position every time.

His eyes were starting to bug when his jaw set and he stopped thinking of her as Lucy, his sister and started thinking of her as the raging fucking nutjob slayer in need of some serious shock therapy.

It was a race against time. Lucy waiting for her brother to pass out which was proving harder and harder with the ungodly thick muscle to his neck and Laxus waiting for his lightning to build around them, the tendrils of electricity already arcing between the two of them to pull a cry of determined pain from the smaller dragon. Her scales were holding up but they weren't going to withstand his power for very much longer.

She was going to need to think up something quick.

Though underhanded and less than honorable, her fingers found the sensitive bloodied flesh of his broken nose and pressed hard enough to have his own pained roar burst from his chest before taking the momentary lapse to throw her whole body weight back and twist them midair to take most of the brunt of the fall on her knee, hearing the bone itself crack from the weight and pressure before the two were ripped apart by their respective mates. Bickslow and Kaleb had seen enough and honestly thought Zen would have had the sense to break them up sooner than right then. The moment Laxus' brain moved her into the enemy category, the whole demeanor of the fight changed and it was a tangible lust for more pain and more blood. Their dragons had more control than themselves and that was dangerous in a real fight let alone two dragons going at for 'training'.

Fifteen minutes of silence between the siblings later, Cristoff and Nix were having a grand ol' time as they worked at healing Lucy's shattered kneecap and Laxus' mangled nose having been the worst of the damage while the two blonds shared mirroring cross armed, angry grimaces as they pointedly looked away from the other.

"What did we learn, kiddies?" Kaleb's silky voice was far too casual for either Fairy's liking as they both snapped for him to shut up before realizing they were in sync, glaring at each other and going back to their angry sulking.

"Now, now, is that any way to talk to your man, bossman?" Bickslow's own teasing tone doing nothing to help the situation from his relaxed and wholly unharmed disposition.

Vander chose now to pipe up from where he had taken to all out ogling the Firebird Spirit in his usual manner of speaking. "I've seen a lot of hate sex in my day and by far," pausing to roll his gaze over the two now forcibly hunched mages avoiding wherever the hell that opener could be going, "that was the most thrilling exchange of visceral emotion I've ever seen. Bravo."

"What the hell, Red?!" Embarrassed for the comparison of she and Laxus to those the Shadowquip had fucked, her face twisted in disgust before her eyes darted to see her brother's reaction before thinking better of it and focusing on Phoenix's adept hands as they worked.

Laxus hadn't even bothered with giving the Shadowquip a response as he felt Kaleb's fingers run through the short length of hair to comb out his own dried blood in lazy passes. He tried to fight the relief, the calm, that came with it for his own mulish ways but found himself utterly defenseless when it came the Mindbender before he let out a dramatic sigh and batted Cristoff's hands away from his face to look down at his little sister without her knowing. Taking the fight for what it was, she was goddamn impressive if reckless and he had to at least give her that. "Oi."

She gave a short hum as her only response as her face twisted into a wince at Nix's careful prodding around her knee.

"Anhur doesn't stand a chance against you." It was delivered evenly. No frills or bells. Just a clinical assessment of her drastic improvements and the power she had.

Fortunately for Laxus, his sister was still his sister at her core as her eyes shined with emotion when she finally met his steely blue stare. "You mean it…?" He gave a grunt and slight dip to his chin as she finally released the tension in her body and leaned against his arm for the support she always found in the reliable Lightning mage. "I'm not scared. Is that weird?" She thought it absolutely bonkers.

His answer was swift and held no doubts in the intelligent little powerhouse mage. "No. I've never been scared of going into any of my fights, why should you?"

Her laughter was on the cusp of self-deprecating without actually merging into that territory. "I'm not you maybe?" Cutting off her playful tease with a sharp intake before the warmth of the tanned jovial spirit's healing magic started mending the shards of her bone back together in an itchy but not unpleasantly so way.

"True," he conceded. "But you're stronger."

That stunned everyone save for Nix, happily bebopping along to a new song Cepheus had shown him earlier in his head because Laxus Dreyar had just said Lucy Heartfilia was stronger than him. Lucy was stronger than Laxus. She let his words run on repeat in her head while Bickslow jumped on the opportunity to make his life hell with a tongue-lolling cackle.

"Did I just hear that right? Did you just admit that my beautiful talented girlfriend was stronger than you?"

The Lightning slayer rolled his eyes before turning to face Cristoff with another pouty childlike look of regret before prompting the grinning Lunar Slayer to finish with his nose so he could help Freed and Ever with the barrier. He suddenly had absolutely no desire to fight anyone.

Are you running away, my little insulator plug? The rich silk of the White Sea guildmaster's voice was anything but the grating noise you'd think it was with the way Laxus' face twisted to pull a chastising smack from the Lunar Slayer at his continued fidgeting.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

The night before the big bad final showdown was surprisingly calm for the team. They had all retired to their own respective rooms to try and settle into sleep naturally. It was a fruitless hope of an endeavor given the wily nature of three of their party. Especially considering those three, in particular, had an uncanny way of dragging the previously five, now six, other mages into said troublemaking shenanigans.

In Bickslow and Lucy's room, the wonder twin duo of Lu and Van had claimed the bed for their own as the smaller blonde wonder twin brandished a pillow like it was meant to be in her deft grip against the unmoving broad set of shoulders so wide she was pretty sure she could have just climbed on and perched there comfortably to draw Zen into their childish antics while the taller dark-haired wonder twin straight up spartan kicked his blunette older brother from the bed to land on the floor in a heap.

"Have fun sleeping on the floor," sounded like a beautiful singsong from where he was bent over the Seith's sprawled frame. "I'll be sure to keep our little champion nice and warm in the night for you."

Bickslow was having a hard time keeping his laughter in check as he moved to grab his youngest brothers wrist only to swipe at nothing and have his face squash against the cool stone of the floor. Vander had taken to perching his full weight between the blades of Bickslow's shoulders. Having had the acrobatic training he's had, it took him little effort to stand up while keeping his unwanted passenger balanced when in a traitorous twist of events, a heavy feather pillow knocked Vander clean from his back. Blinking down at his brother before looking over to see Lucy smiling at him like the picture of innocence with Zen smirking from behind her shoulders as she gave him a casual shrug and a wink.

"Why do you hurt me so, starshine," was the discarded Pradesh's lamenting cry as his face dropped into a bored expression. It lasted a total of five seconds before his sly mouth was curling into his usual devilish grin directed at the now wide-eyed slayer.

In what she thought was a brilliant tactical move, she jumped off the bed and scrambled to use Zen's thick body as a human shield. As fruitless as the notion of peaceful sleeping was, her escape was ill-thought as Van plucked her from behind his newest brother and disappeared with her, leaving Bickslow and Zen alone for the first time since they'd met.

The Seith got the distinct impression that they were about to have a heart to heart. A make or break step right off the fresh start to their relationship.

XXxXXxXxXXxXX

One room over, an unsuspecting Lunar Slayer had two bodies tumble into his lap like one singular ball of mischief and sharp elbows to pull a deep masculine grunt from the poor guy, his arms catching them in an off-kilter hug on instinct. Lucy ended up landing on her back across his chest with her legs over his shoulder and her face buried in the crotch of she and Vander's matching Plue onesies while his face was squashed in the pillowy cushion of her chest. His knee had the unfortunate landing zone of Cristoff's manhood.

Without hesitation, she immediately opened her mouth to defend herself while trying to shove the absolutely useless cackling frame of the youngest Pradesh off Cris to put those sharp elbows to use. "I just want to make it very clear to everyone that this wasn't my fault. This landing was brought to you by Van and his horrible brain damaged decision to get revenge."

Not wanting to get up, Vander channeled his inner three year old and straight out refused to get up by means of becoming all floppy dead weight. He did remove his knee from his brother's balls though. He wasn't that cruel. "I was just trying to make you feel better, starshine." His infamously deceptive sweet curling smile of innocence promised anything but.

"Do I have a say in any of this?" A good-natured drawl sounded from beneath the two of them to earn syncopated 'no's from the two before the Lunar Slayer's soothing laughter washed over them.

It wasn't long before the three of them were all tucked into Cristoff's bed and gossiping like a bunch of old bitties with too much time on their hands. Lucy talking about Laxus like the emotionally stunted baby he was and Cristoff giving away all of Kaleb's embarrassing little moments only to be matched with Laxus' in kind by the little blonde. When Vander started throwing in stories about her mate as well, Lucy was crying tears of hilarity at the hysterical goings on in the Pradesh household. She would happily take on a hundred gods if meant getting her here, surrounded by the most amazing and talented mages with hearts of gold. Every single one of them.

Finally wiping away the last of her free rolling tears, missing a few stray drops, she had to get her breathing back to something resembling normal before she opened her mouth to say something about how fucking epic their trips home would be but only found her cackling renewed, a whole new round of gut-busting laughter filling the room to spill all the way across the hall and into the two separate rooms that held Laxus and Kaleb.

The Lightning Slayer had laid down twice only to get right back up and start pacing, his hands running through his hair enough even he was worried about going bald. Since recognizing his mate in the White Sea's guildmaster, his dragon had become his own personal torturer in perfect tandem with the Mindbender himself. The Mindbender himself who had the ability to make his life extremely hard. At any given moment. Including right now from a whole different room. His voice was inaudible to everyone save the blond Boscan but the bite to his words was dulled and only prompted the Mindbender to test his resolve further. Keep your hands to yourself.

Kaleb's answer was even but Laxus knew the Pradesh was wearing the familial cheshire grin. My hands are already to myself, where are yours? Tell me, Laxus. Which is the exact moment a flash of the incredibly naked man laid back in his bed gripping his half-hardened cock in his hand with desire lighting in his pale eyes with challenge though the prone position should have been submissive and meek.

His answer was a growl as he pointedly went back to his pacing. Quit with that shit. You're no fucking better than those brothers of yours. And he meant it. No better than Bickslow and no better than Vander. Definitely not better than Cristoff.

You wound me, really. Van? You think I'm worse than Van? Kaleb's voice a soft tease as he continued to project the images of his own careful ministrations into his mates jumbled head.

His jaw snapped as his cock stirred to life. Even the great Thunder God couldn't fight the undeniable attraction of two souls meant to be joined. Van's never forced me to watch him fucking masturbate.

Are telling me you aren't enjoying the show? His stroking sped only enough to have his member harden fully, pre-cum starting to leak over his hand.

The Lightning Slayer's jaw was going to crack if the pressure he was putting on it increased anymore after the teasing drawl that pulled a low keening moan from between his sharp teeth and for the second time, Laxus snapped completely. Ripping the thick door right from the stone of the wall to stalk his way over to the tricksy fucker responsible for his raging hard-on and ferocious desire showing itself in the form of ragged breathing that definitely looked like seething anger to the poor wide eyed servant girl dropping off a gift from Siwa at the wrong time and she turned right back around to get away from the bunch of insane foreigners before that rage was directed on something with a breath. Like herself.

When Kaleb's own door slammed back, the hinges bending the wrong way because Laxus shoved it in went it was made to be pulled out, he was less than surprised and even amused to watch the look of sheer aroused rage twist up to add confusion into the delicious mix. Granted, it made sense for the panting slayer to be at least a little confused. When he made his dramatic entrance, Kaleb was sitting up in a pile of cushions with a comm in hand instead of his dick and he was fully clothed in his armor from the days sparring instead of being completely bare like Laxus had hoped.

It was a glorious moment for the Mindbender to soak in for his own humor in the years to come with the stunted man.

He watched without movement, without interruption, as steely-blues narrowed in a look of unadulterated annoyance at the Pradesh and his fucking magic with full intentions of plucking the lacrima out of his hand and tossing it anywhere that wasn't where it was and Kaleb let him. He was more than a little shocked by the rough treatment of his armor as Laxus plucked piece after piece off and tossed them similarly to the way he carelessly discarded anything else in the way of his hands to get on the planes of his mate's flawless skin. It was tunnel vision for the repressed Dragon Slayer and Kaleb felt no inclination to stop it.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

Looking at his older brother now, Bickslow tried to muster up all the ill-will he could to get it out of the way before they had the very ominous but necessary talk about Lucy and where they all stood in relation to the beautiful woman. He really really tried to pull it all out but there just wasn't any with real gumption. He tried to think about the two in compromising positions, tried to stir the green-eyed troll that was his own personification of his jealousy that seemed to apply exclusively to his blonde miracle girl and while he definitely stirred back, his overwhelming urge to make sure his family, all his family, was happy and safe overruled any objections he could muster up. Sex with the three of them? Kinky and taboo in Fiore but exciting and exhilarating to him. The living arrangements? He had a spare room perfect for a man uncomfortable with too much contact with people. The need for Zen to be completely under the radar? Well, that one was going to take a little adjusting on all fronts considering Bickslow drew attention naturally and Lucy's new magical output and improvement would call the attention of the Magic Council but they could manage it. They had to manage it because there was no way the newest Dragon Slayer was going to let anything shy of absolute protection and seamless social integration of the Archangel into their lives happen. Bickslow didn't need to talk to Lucy to know that and he agreed wholeheartedly.

The gruff bass of Zen's voice shook him from his own thoughts as the babies all stayed in their posts around his head. Except for Muu. The young soul was trying his hardest to get the older terrifying mages attention but couldn't muster the courage to float up to him directly as he slowly inched his way across the bed towards him. "I'm not here to take her from anyone or fuck up your life."

The thought hadn't even occurred to Bix. Well, it had but he smothered it pretty quickly after seeing the way the Light of Fairy Tail was quickly becoming the Light of the Pradesh brood as well. "Thanks for the reassurance but it's wasted on me." Deep plum eyes narrowed in doubt as the flecks of gold caught the dim light and the blunette let out a sigh of a laugh before he moved to sit next to Zen on the side of the bed, Muu taking the chance to casually float on the thick muscle of his newest friends thigh since Bickslow was close enough for Muu to feel safe. "I mean, I'm not going to get in the way of whatever she wants. I'm so fucking lucky to have her at all and there isn't anything that's going to keep me from making her happy." There was a beat of tentative silence before he gave his brother's stiff arm a gentle elbow to add, "and I'm not losing either one of you now that I have you both."

"Tomorrow will decide it for all of us," was his very evenly and uncomfortably cryptic delivered answer to take Bix back a bit, his body following his brains first reaction and manifesting it as a physical lean back to stare at the deeply tanned, incredibly strong man next to him. He didn't like the way it sounded. Made him think the Archangel knew something he didn't.

"Uh, what the hell does that mean, bro?"

"It means exactly what I said." Simple and straightforward as if that should have clarified everything.

Drawing a breath in to mull over the words to see if maybe there was some hidden meaning he was missing and coming up short, the Seith flat out asked, "You tryin' to tell me something or are you always this mystical when you talk?"

A breath of a laugh left his nostrils, flaring them out just a bit before offering his open scarred palm to the littlest totem trembling on his leg. Only when Muu settled himself in, did Zen speak again but his attention was totally on Muu and the delicate features of his youthful carved face. His voice was as quiet as it was going to get with the rough nature of his whole entire being. "My whole life has been life or death. I know when someone can handle it, fight for it, and Lucy will give her life if that means saving any one of you. I won't let that happen." Cleanly delivered like the blunt analysis it was.

Unable to disagree with that since it has happened multiple times in the Celestial Mage's life, he gave a curt nod of his head as he watched the interesting interactions between his big bad ex-gladiator brother and the smallest and most innocent soul.

The combined whooping and hollering of their two youngest brothers and Lucy's own loud melody had both men sharing a look of 'what could possibly be going on now' with Bickslow's face curling into a knowing grin and Zen's own dropping with dread. In the short time he has been around his family he has learned one thing that has yet to fail him; there was nothing sacred between them. They knew everything about every one of them. At first, it bristled his fight or flight response, his always being set to fight, but after closer inspection, the Archangel realized it was mostly centered in genuine love and care they held for one another. The other few times are for pure entertainment and while that still made him entirely uncomfortable, he wasn't going ruin it. His youth was spent with the flickering hope that he had a family before it had been extinguished by the man who held his leash. He had a family now and they were the weirdest bunch of mages he had ever seen. Not that he would change a single thing about any one of them.

"I fucking told you they weren't going to make it," wholly female voice drew like a lilting melody and Bickslow could see her holding her hand out for Vander to pay up on the private bet that Laxus and Kaleb were no better than she and Bickslow and were in fact going to be worse, "dragons are horny little fuckers."

"I'm a horny fucker, this is just precious." The Shadow Mage's easy response was casual as both absent Pradesh brothers gathered themselves, Muu floating ahead to cuddle into his favorite set of boobs, to see what the commotion was really all about.

Upon exiting the bedroom, they watched as pillows after cushions launched out of the broken doorway at the cackling antagonists dodging the projectiles with ease. Laxus' distinct growl was rumbling through the hall while the smooth silk of Kaleb's voice overrode the horrible sound of his mate's ire. "I'll make your life hell when we get back home."

"Hah! Maybe you should have thought about getting down and dirty when you don't have a goddamned door. Really," Vander's smug face popped into the archway with a huge toothy grin, "you're the one putting on a free show. I just happened to walk by," before another bright pillow aimed perfectly at said smug face flew without fail only to have him disappear and reappear on the other side of the opening. "It's not like I haven't seen it all before. Don't you remember the night in my penthou-"

"Three seconds before I find a way to rip your precious dick from your body." The Lightning Slayer wasn't having any of the teasing bullshit as he sat between his mate's thick legs, one on either side of his body completely devoid of all clothing and shamelessly smirking at the rest of them without a care in the world. And why would he, he managed to bring the world's straightest alpha to his knees without a single touch. He earned the confidence twice over as far as he and everyone else was concerned.

Thankfully, his little sister new the feeling of wanting your mate so badly it hurt so she used her charisma and brute force to manhandle the group away from the room before calling her trusty maid spirit out to help Laxus out with his privacy problem as a favor to both her big brother and the man brave enough to tease him to the point of feral. She would let him have his night before they had to save a country from a rampant god.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~Okay soooooo I'm going to be working on the big shebang now and I'M SO STOKED so I hope y'all are too.
> 
> What'd ya think? I'm dying to know... ^.^ Thank you so so much for your words and support. Seriously. It means a lot to me.~


	20. Step Twenty: Fight Me God

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~So we are about to have a little lesson in lore because I'm about to talk about made up stuff and I don't want to confuse you.  
> First off: Ao is going to purposefully remain this out of sight omniscient presence but the primordial being for my intent and purpose is basically the embodiment and source of all light and all things considered 'good'. The being itself is kind of morally grey but the things it touches and creates are generally lumped into the 'good' side of things. Not too far from its original Maori roots  
> Second off: Rehua is the Maori god of stars BUT NOT TODAY as far as this story is concerned, we are calling Lucy's lost magic rehua because hello, the actual mythology works too well for me to ignore it and I'm incapable of pulling a serious made-up name for anything out of my ass without it sounding completely whimsical and funny.  
> This is so long I'm sorry: So there will be a part in brackets that we are all going to accept as a flashback, okay? Okay!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun Fact: Remember how I said family wasn't a word the longer I looked at it for the last chappie? Yeah, apparently strategy is also one of those words and now I'm cackling like a goon because words aren't real and neither am I. Thank you for tuning in XD~

Step 20: Fight Me God

Lucy had never stood face to face with a god before. Not a real live, lion-head-having, bloodthirsty looking, only the blood of my enemies will satisfy kind of god anyway. He seemed relatively...tame compared to what she was expecting despite Cristoff's description. It could have been Vander exaggerating of course but it took all her power not to look back over her shoulder and find Bickslow's comforting gaze. She knew it wouldn't be there. From the moment she and her draconian-brother had stepped foot through the barrier, she lost all sense and connection to the outside world unless she focused really hard on the Shadowquip. Though the effort would usually bring him to her, having at least the ability to make sure he was all right was reassurance enough. They had a plan and it would work. They all held confidence that this would work. Especially since the seemingly useless gift, Siwa had left for them was much more than they were making it out to be as a key point in the strategy. The Lunar Slayer had looped the little gem inside twine to form a bracelet and if it did what it was supposed to do and weaken the barrier, Lucy would only have to distract Anhur for five minutes. If Freed and his calculations were to be taken as fact which all of them did, five minutes of one-on-one with the God of War in exchange for the permanent taming of the rogue being was an exchange she was willing to make. Cristoff had to take his half of the mysterious artifact from Siwa on the inside of the barrier and connect it through the barrier with the piece the brains of the Raijinshu had on the other side for a sure fire way to bring it down as promised by the Oracle. The problem with the plan was the fact that the inside of the barrier wasn't the same as the outside of the barrier. The visuals were warped and they had no means of communication so Freed held steady on the outside while Cristoff played pin the tail on the donkey from the inside. While the Celestial Dragon Slayer fought the patron god of the Royal Joyan Army. She could give Laxus a run for his money before the dragon slaying bit was added and after the scaley addition to her magic repertoire, she could give Vander a run for his money. Both were pretty impressive feats considering Celestial Magic as a stand alone usually weren't that inherently strong. Usually being the key word there.

Cracking her neck as she approached the half and half god, her thoughts were solely focused on channeling some of her best friends bottomless fighting spirit and confidence. It was easy to do on an infinite number of reasons; she got to go home after she won, she got to see Natsu himself after she won, she got to mate with the sexiest man on the planet after she won, she could figure out who her father was. The list went on and on but the only thing her dragon needed was the fact that her opponent looked far too bored for her liking. As in, she could feel the awful pain in her fingertips from the way her nails were fluctuating between extending and sharpening to her regular set of short manicured blunt nails.

Anhur's voice was even and measured after a millennium of existing. Not necessarily cold but definitely lacking a certain bellicose fire in his disturbingly human eyes. For some reason, that threw her off enough to actually forget that he was a god for a few seconds. It was a welcome reprieve if only temporarily. "I see he has chosen his champion well."

Without thinking, her mouth moved faster than her brain could filter them. "You can still back out. I promise I won't think any less of you." It was a long shot and a half-hearted attempt to quell some of the anxiety coursing through her veins. It earned her a hearty laugh that seemed to shake the very ground he stood on and she gave Natsu's spirit a mental 'thank you' while ignoring the fact that it got much the same effect as when the Fire Slayer said things like that.

"Arrogance doesn't suit you and it soils the gifts you have been given. I came for a battle and I'll get it."

She had to agree with that. Arrogance would have been thick and unnatural but that was a genuine proposal. It was the only leniency she would show him because there was absolutely no she way she was about to die here on foreign soil without actually making love to her amazing mate. She would tolerate no less than a lifetime with Bickslow and gods help Anhur for getting in the way of that. Her eyes narrowed critically as she hissed out from her between her sharp canines from her hardened stance. "You came for war and I'm gonna give it to you."

More booming laughter sounded coarse to her heightened senses. The noise itself trying to tear away at her resolve and failing as many others had failed when facing a determined Fairy Tail mage. They weren't shaken so easily and she had good reason to stand tall, unafraid. The rolling bass of his words tried their best to succeed where all others have failed. "Defeat will taste bitter, child of the stars and light."

"You'll have to let me know when this is all over then," was all she gritted out before the familiar feeling of her scales started crawling with a slow even pace over the curves and valleys of her smooth skin to show the control she had over the state. It was even and measured like the rest of the War God. Just like Anhur's subtle drop into a fighting stance from a fighting style lost to the ages before he pulled a simple steel sword and a curved dagger from the sheaths crossed over his back with such a controlled motion, Lucy could see the glint of the handle as he pulled them in perfect sync at a pace that had her zeroing in on the simple jeweled pattern on the hilts. Well enough to see Siwa's gift had very much come from the blank spot where the little pair of sapphires had so obviously sat. She wondered if he noticed. If it bothered the immortal being. Having no sense of self-preservation, she asked with a lightness to her voice that definitely bothered her divine opponent before the ball of the right foot dug into the dark brown of Joyan's terrain as his incredibly large body shot at her faster than a bullet. With the sword aimed high for her throat while the deadly tip of his dagger stayed low with the goal to sink the curved blade into the soft flesh of her stomach. She made no move and he nearly let out a noise od dissatisfaction with the ease of which he disposed of her. Except he was met instead with the myriad of black-blue and gold covering every inch of exposed skin of her body to find his weapons ineffective, his calm demeanor held as he retreated back just out of reach to assess the woman with more effort. He paid little mind beyond the sheer power she held before and quickly looked deeper into the girl to figure out what was preventing him from killing her in bladed combat. His feline brow cocked ever so slightly as his grip adjusted on the wrapped handles of his weapons. "Not so human, are you?"

Calling both Caelum and Scutum to help her, she felt more aware, more present with the heavy weight on her limbs. Seemed kind of silly to go into a knife fight bare-fisted. The versatile chisel spirit came to her in the form of a long halberd with the hooked end of the blade large enough to slice limbs without problem while the greatshield dug into the ground where Lucy had planted it as a means of cover if she needed while being easily accessible defense since she wanted to be a bit more mobile to start with to get a good gauge on his power while she evaded the blows. "Not so confident, are you?"

The two were pacing, weighing and measuring their enemy to make the best move. The faster move. Both with hopes of drawing blood as they came together in clash after clash of what seemed like hours, weeks of taking hit after blow in a relentless barrage from all angles. It made her very thankful for Vander being cheating little shit he was when they fought. In a minuscule window of chance, Lucy managed to hook Caelum around the back of his ankle to slice the tendon and spray blood. It went unnoticed by the god to show just how inhuman he was. Hoping to keep her streak up, she swung the blunt metal end of her long handle to connect with the same knee in hopes of weakening the indomitable man.

More time than she thought necessary passed and just as she noticed his controlled breathing turned more and more ragged with each swing of his heavy arms. The two went blow for blow with each other, both covered in an array of knicks and bruises before Lucy finally felt it. The crack in the barrier. It was so faint and so little, Anhur seemed none the wiser while his one-sided onslaught pushed her further back. It took all her willpower not to react when she finally lifted her eyes to meet his. They were burning with a crazed look and they had taken this inhuman feline slitted look that should have unnerved her in the very least. Lucy felt what that little crack meant just as well as she felt the sting of his blade through the muscle of her bicep. She was no longer alone. The Celestial Dragon Slayer just needed to keep him distracted long enough to allow the rest of her nakama time to take down the rest of the damn thing keeping them out.

Before she could use the blunt end of her spear to help her up from where the powerful merciless kick low on her abdomen from the god had landed her in heap, a familiar voice sounded like smoke through the heated air. Glorious, playful and completely inappropriate for the setting. "Did ya miss me, starshine?" And just like that, the tide switched from Lucy's cat and mouse way of strike and retreat to the kind of deadly calm that seemed to rattle Anhur as her eyes turned electric gold and a slow curling smile pulled her cheeks up. The change in her demeanor was followed by a surge in her power thanks to the connections bolstering her soul to make the light of her magic swell and project from her body like golden sunlight.

Anhur felt fear for the first time in a very long time at the pressure her very being was putting on his own immortal soul. It could only mean one thing. He linked the impossible together by means of his own Joyan interpretation. She was the culmination of what felt older than his own creator and the creator before him. Her power was ancient yet her soul was young. The closer her comrades got, the greater her magic swelled and the crushing weight of her very presence was starting to make his shoulders sag and his breath to catch in ways he had only felt once before in his very long existence when he was far too young to know any better.

[When the world was young and so were the gods, they lived with the humans that worshipped them and as such dwelled without restriction. Anhur was reckless in his youth and determined to prove himself. So he left the safety of his own pantheon with nothing but conquest on his mind and his arrogance led him to an ancient being without body name Ao. He was everything good and light in the world and held no desire to fight the child of a god who came before him with nothing but hate and misguided fear of never measuring up to the gods above him. Ao held no affiliation to any god or place. He was sunlight and day, forgiveness and retribution, golden starlight and hope. It was hard even standing before the primordial god. Anhur regretted seeking him out but held no intentions of backing down and he soon learned to regret it. Though Ao held no physical form to attack, his power was much greater than that. The ancient forced Anhur to turn inward and look over the pain and strife he had caused. Made him relive it over and over again for decades, centuries maybe before the Joyan God of War broke. He wondered where his brothers and sisters were and if they had noticed his absence. He wondered if there would ever be enough forgiveness in the world for beings he's hurt and cut down for senseless bloodsport.]

The answer to the question he'd forgotten so long ago, lost the millennia and lost the god until Lucy came before him, was simple. He had no doubts that this tiny girl was the by-product of Ao and a human much stronger and more resilient than he ever gave the species credit for and that, that was enough to have him stop and think for the first time since his High Priest started placating him with the seeds of his own demise. His forgiveness came in the form of the peoples' acceptance of him and the nature of war. War was harsh and necessary but rarely needed so often. His people were stable and happy. Without his people, he had no hope of remaining.

Laying down his weapons before laying a closed fist over his heart and bowing his head, the God of War spoke with reverence in his voice as Lucy nearly fainted from the turn of events, her golden eyes going wide as she first took in the kneeling God of War before her and then panned her head around to see if any of her team had gotten to her yet because Anhur was talking to her like she was a god and there was no fucking way this was actually happening. She literally tore herself apart to prepare for this fight and here he was just...giving up? That didn't seem right.

But then again, who was she to question the massively massive dude and his massively massive muscle. Not to mention the magic. It was also, you guessed it, massively massive.

Though it was pretty close and Vander had managed to beat him because of their soul-bond, Laxus was close behind with the static aftershock of his flash-step leaving arcs running across his skin. Without thinking, the Lightning Mage lowered his center of gravity to make himself more stable before taking in the sight of Anhur kneeling in front of his doe-eyed confused sister glowing brighter than the sun while he kept calling her 'the daughter of ow' and 'light of lights' while asking her for forgiveness. It left the two blonds utterly silent and completely uncomfortable with the unexpected...victory.

Having gotten past the point of embarrassed for the weird worship-like antics, Lucy's Dragon Force fell away scale by scale as she fell to her knees right in front of the being she was pretty sure was going to end her life like ten seconds. Whether her knees giving out was from the light-headedness she suddenly felt at expelling so much magic just warding his off or from the sheer whiplash of her confusion, she couldn't tell but she did know this wasn't how this was supposed to go. She said as much as her voice grew tight. "What the actual fuck is going on?"

Laxus' deep drawl was comforting in theory but his mirrored sentiments only pulled her deeper into herself. "Who the fuck is 'Ow' and why the fuck is he giving up? What'd you do, Blondie?"

Her voice was distant and far away in ways that had the two males present moving closer on impulse. "That's what I'd like to know…"

This seemed to take the god off guard as his cautious eyes met hers as if she were the one they needed to worry about flying off the handle and not him. "Ao is...older than the gods themselves. He is goodness and light. Your father hasn't been seen or heard from since before humans were created until I found him and he's shown no favor for anyone or thing before now."

In an uncouth moment of dumbstruck idiocy, the blonde forced out a few chuckles. "Well, I guess that explains who dear old daddy is."

"You genuinely didn't know?" Anhur seemed even more surprised at this. "And yet you still faced me alone?" Though the tone was nearly chastising, he was clearly impressed. That much was evident in the piercing light in his human eyes.

"I was only going to be alone for a few minutes longer…" Her reply was mumbled and dazed as she tried to process his words. Ao. Her father's name was Ao and he was more than ancient. More than just a diety. He helped shaped the world and gave the gods light. He was strong enough that even the recognition of his power within her was enough for Anhur to cease the fight and bow down. None of it made any sense.

Before she spiraled too far down, her mate's arms wrapped her up in his warm scent, one hand coming to cradle her head to his chest to keep her close and the other low around her hip as he breathed his own soft reassurances into her hair. Neither one really knew who they were aimed at and neither one cared; his heartbeat was her lifeline and her warm was anchoring him to reality. The High Priests barrier was more than just a means to keep them out. It created false scenes and was the true power behind the bloody scenes of Siwa's prophecy. Inside looking out was like a white blank slate but outside looking in was just as traumatic for him to watch as the first time he saw the horrible scenes. Thankfully they had prevented it from coming to fruition but at the cost of Lucy losing her identity for those few minutes of confusion and silence. Her body was unnaturally still and her deep chocolate eyes had glazed over in ways that tugged at her draconic-siblings chests like a physical chain tethering them to her was tugging hard. Both Laxus and Cristoff had to fight the breathless feeling of drowning in the waves of her thick sticky emotional turmoil.

Her Seith watched the light of her golden soul fluctuate under her own inward scrutiny of herself like she was rejecting the part of her from the primordial being and her foreign magic before Draco's presence could be felt just behind the pair. At this point, all of their family had caught up to see the bizarre scene in a very neat little half circle behind the two mates as they gave their own emotional stares between the calm God of War, their stock-still blonde beauty and her older brother giving accusatory glares at Draco for being a good for nothing lizard withholding information. Laxus was too lost to the ragged edges of her choking confusion to understand Draco knew Lucy had to be completely confident, one-hundred percent sure of herself in order to even step into the metaphorical and literal ring with Anhur.

The long raven-haired dragon dressed in his usual perfectly tailored regalia ignored everyone except for his daughter. His daughter and the woman brave enough to shoulder the responsibilities of a country that wasn't technically hers to worry about. Above all things, Lucy was still the same honey-eyed sweet sassy woman from before. He chose her out of all the humans he's ever come across in his centuries of living and Ao allowed the seed of his magic to blossom into the amazing woman she was today. He would convince her that this was exactly as it should be and changed nothing within her. Her rehua had always been inside her. Her whole life just keeping her resilient in quiet imperceptible ways and the only thing that changed was the fact that she now knew it was there.

He wouldn't have the chance to say any of this as the High Priest of Anhur himself came flying across the empty space in front of the worn forgotten temple like a bat out of hell with a face only a mother could love twisted into a rage so pure and so tangible, it took the Archangel Mage who was trying his hardest to remain unseen and not involved all but three seconds to bring his heavy fist down on top of the small sad man's head knocking him clean out with one single blow. The commotion was enough to finally stir their frozen little Celestial Mage to draw her eyes from the dark earth beneath her outstretched bloody fingers to meet Anhur's unyielding gaze with a confidence they all were relieved to see as a massive sigh left the rest of her team in an audible wave.

Her voice trembled with what they thought was fear but Kaleb saw into her head to know better. He saw the way whatever ignited the change, the awareness of the rehua living deep in her soul, shook her to her very core enough that regardless of her own self-assuredness, she was going to be trembling for a little bit while they found some way to suppress it until her own brain stopped fighting her body. "Are you afraid of me?"

"No." There was a pause before the lion-headed god asked with a neutrality that bordered apathy. "Do you want me to be afraid of you?"

"No." Another pause as her chin drooped and her eyes went back to the blood dripping down the valleys of her ragged knuckles, down between her fingers and her voice grew impossibly small. "I'm afraid of me…" Because she was. She was petrified of what this meant for her. Was she supposed to do something with this god-given magic?

Since he held no issue with caring about her opinion of him, his apathetic voice held no comfort for her as he asked bluntly. "Were you afraid before?"

"No." Which was kind of the point. She knew who, what, she was before she came here and now she was just another blessed freak at the center of all the bullshittiest bullshit.

"Then there is no need to be afraid now." As if that were that, the man stood and offered her his open hand, all traces of their short brawl gone in favor of rich ancient crimson silks and golden armor as Evergreen scoffed quietly from her place between Freed and Laxus at the perks of being a god during post-battle clean-up. "Ao hasn't abandoned you and though you are alone in your lineage, you are not alone. I should very much enjoy watching your life, Champion of Light." It took her a few seconds to take in the mundane human details of the palm of his hand. The smooth skin unscarred and unscathed by time as she followed the maze of wrinkles before hesitantly lifting her own blood-drenched hand to grab it, letting her mate's weight fall off her shoulders as she stood tall in front of this monstrous presence, her eyes swimming with the hope that he would somehow make this easier. "You haven't changed, only awakened the remaining dormant rehua inside yourself. Given the nature of Ao, it won't take long for you to adjust." Meaning the nature of this magic wasn't inherently offensive. In fact, it gave her prowess with the magic that was given by her mother and Draco explanation by means of the nature of Celestial magic already being one based in light. In theory, any magic with its core based in the category would be almost scarily easy for her master. It also explained why she was having an issue with the actual dragon part of her soul since that was something the rehua couldn't concatenate quite as easily since that was foreign to the ancient magic which meant aside from the actual Dragon Slaying magic, her control over her instincts and urges was all thanks to her own willpower. Something not to be taken lightly in it of itself.

Unable to let things be, the youngest Pradesh inserted himself between the two goody-good gods to clarify for everyone that he wasn't trying to start a war with Seven and that he was going fix the bullshit he had stirred up under the false pretenses of his High Priests' meddling which the god of war reassured that he would do his best at rectifying the situation alongside Siwa, Cristoff, and Lucy. Vander broke into girly giggles at the use of the words rectify for obvious immature reasons. Keeping his arms wrapped around both sets of wildly different shoulders, Anhur's big enough to build a house on and Lucy's having developed into the lithe buff that matched Natsu's, to walk them all the way back from Anhur's original temple in the middle of bumfuck nowhere with the hopes that his teasing would bring the life back into his partner in crime. They just did the impossible and none of them were worse for wear aside from the gruesome but nonfatal cuts and bruises on the little miracles strong frame.

XxXxXXxXXxXxX

They spent the following week fixing the aftermath of the short battle and while both Draco and Anhur were helpful in her basic grasp of the Rehua Magic she inherited from Ao, she just wanted to go home and sleep next to her mate. They all just wanted to go home and sleep in their own beds in the safety and comfort of home.

The whole concept seemed so far away but Lucy had just managed to work with both Draco and Cristoff to help the king pull the poisonous magic from his body before convincing the stubborn man that the possibilities of letting his daughter become a sort of emissary between them specifically but any Celestial Spirit since she was a Starwalker and could come and go from the Spirit World freely now that they gave her the tools and information to do so without any strain on her would be worth it for he and his country. They were finally getting down to the last few minutes they would be in Joya when Vander and Lucy decided to make the shadowstepping and gate-hopping a competition as they attempted to grab as many of their family as they could as fast as they could to bring them to Laxus' house outside Magnolia since it was the largest of them available. No one was willing to risk stumbling headfirst into another problem on the way out of the tough and rugged country and Lucy desperately missed her nakama. She missed her fiery best friend and his unending enthusiasm. She missed Erza's concussive hugs and they way it somehow always smelled sweet warm like fresh vanilla buttercream. She missed talking to Gray and being in his soothing strong presence. She missed Fairy Tail and how the guild hall always smelled like homecooked meals and stale beer from drunken nights even Mira couldn't wipe away. The only heads up the guild got on their return was a very succinct synopsis from their resident taciturn Lightning Slayer and he failed to mention when exactly they were even coming back, leaving it at 'we'll be back in week, maybe longer' and hanging up to make Natsu an absolute mess with the unpredictable flashes between woeful depression so low the miasma of sadness weighed the whole building down, overwhelming euphoria so intense the excitement made him a flaming jumping bean and misdirected ire in the form of huffy irritation that Mira got to talk to Lucy and he didn't to fill the guild hall with smoke completely.

Unfortunately for them, the constant in and out of Lucy's unsuppressed magical presence drew the attention of the Magic Council idiots that happened to just set up station in Magnolia since four of Fairy Tail's more infamous mages had been gone for almost three months so by the time she and Bix dropped in the living room with the rest of the Fairy Tail\White Sea conglomerate, Laxus was snapping at the trio of messengers which gave her no time to argue with Vander about how in all of Ishgar he could even think he was faster than she was. "I don't give a fuck what you think I'm doin'. This is my fuckin' house and you're not coming in. Now back. The fuck. Out of my face."

The cringe on her face was mottled by her own personal amusement with the interaction between her brother and the Council as she crossed the hardwood floors with a bounce to her step at just being in the familiar space to end right next to the Lightning Slayer with little fear of her brother or his overblown circuits. When all three officers looked over the little blonde ball of buff sunshine two sets of eyes bugged at the proximity to Laxus since she certainly didn't look anything like the sweet girl before she left and one coughed through the realization that the barefoot woman with tangles of hair piled on top of a body dressed in a low slung pair of black harem pants and an off the shoulder long-sleeve printed shirt that hugged the defined muscle of her arms was actually the Celestial Mage. Lucy was oblivious to how much she had changed in her time away from home and since she was decidedly more fit and more laid-back, it took her actually speaking before the two male officers put two and two together to get to the right identity of the blond bombshell standing with her hip cocked and smile a mile wide. "Now, now, what seems to be the problem? We've only been home for ten minutes tops which mean you three were prowling. Something Fairy Tail doesn't take too kindly to." It wasn't meant to sound like a threat but with the way Laxus crossed his arms over his chest as two more foreign jacked individuals came to flank either side of the blondes made it hard to not feel threatened in some capacity. Kaleb and Cristoff had that menacing look about them just like Laxus did and when you put that on top of their well-maintained builds that were very capable of murder, it was impressive that the three only took one step back. It was only a little cowardly so they got brownie points for that.

The leftmost Council dog sputtered an attempt at explanation only to be cut off by the whimsical draw of the Shadowquip that appeared out of nowhere directly behind the three, his fingers picking and pulling at the stiff white material uniforms with his usual mischievous grin and wandering hands. "You're interrupting official Boscan business." It took the tallest officer in the middle scoffing at him to trigger a more sinister side of his playful manner. His chin was just shy of resting on the man's shoulder as his breath danced over the shell of his ear to earn waves of shivers from the unwilling participant in Vander's pervy display despite the nature of his words. "I'm sure you've heard all about the Steel Council and how fast they take care of imbeciles that interfere…" The roguish raven-haired Boscan had the opposite effect of his soul-bonded sister-in-law's innocent intent but threatening presence. His words were very much a threat but the sensual way he delivered his veiled words had the man melting in a pool of his own repressed sexuality.

The only female of the group and the one to have instantly recognized the Celestial Mage had a stern face and a mouth that gave the distinct impression that it probably never spoke a cheerful word in her life. She smacked the back of her fellow officers head in order to get him to focus back on the task at hand. This was successful on a basic level as the tallest of them managed to finish his sputtering while attempting to shoulder the assassin from his persons. "I-We are here to inform you that the change in status of Fairy Tail's Master has been acknowledged. Congratulations Master Dreyar."

This was news to everyone save Kaleb and he wasn't about to ruin the surprise at seeing everyone's raw reactions. This was about to get good and the only regret he had was not having time enough to make he and his brothers a big bowl of popcorn while they watched.

Laxus Dreyar went through his whole array of emotions in three seconds. To break it down in slower terms because just watching wasn't enough, Kaleb replayed the short moment for everyone by a forced connection that pulled deafening laughter from Bickslow, Vander and Evergreen. The new guildmaster of Fairy Tail was shocked first, then confused and happy at once before finally settling into his familiar annoyed rage and since he had a habit of releasing the last on whoever happened to be around in the split instance, he scared the bejesus out of the three officers as he ground his words out through clenched teeth. His finger was sure to leave bruises behind where they connected with the tallest man's bony chest. "What the fucks that supposed to mean? Gramps is Master until I take over. That's not supposed to happen for at least another year."

"Apparently not. The paperwork was filed last month and we've been trying to get a hold of you to start the transition process." They gave the guy a little credit for managing to not piss himself. He really looked like that was going to be a problem for him in the stark white pants of his uniform.

Laxus' hardened jaw flexed and tensed as he mulled over what that meant. Makarov knew he would be gone for a while and waited until he wasn't here to dump his workload on him. He would have a mountain of shit to deal with because of this and wasn't exactly in the hosting mood as he growled out. "Is that all 'cause I've got a fucking midget to kill and a house full of mages ready to go home." He didn't wait for someone to answer his rhetorical question before his massive frame took daunting steps forward, simultaneously shoving the Council dogs stumbling off his porch with cartwheeling arms and red-hot faces at the nerve of Fairy Tail's master. "Tell that moron at the head of your circus of trespassing nosy fucks that the next one of you that steps foot on my property or in my guild with my express permission, I'll send them back in a fucking box."

Getting the picture that they would be ashes in said box, they turned tail and ran with as much dignity as one could muster given the circumstances.

It took the Lightning Mage less than an instant to turn his head to silence the continued cackling from behind him as his eyes narrowed and zeroed in on the Mindbender giving him that sexy crooked smirk that just oozed 'I know something you don't know' permanently. "Everyone. Out. I've got some business to take care of, fucking master to master."

Sensing how steamy and destructive this was about to get everyone save Vander started the walk to Magnolia in a happy mass until both bulked up males gave the Shadowquip lounged across railing pinning glares to prompt him to swing his legs on either side and tease. "Come on! This is going to be epic! You can't expect me to just not be curious. Do you even realize what you just said? 'Fucking master to master', really it's like you were just begging for me to stay."

In perfect nauseating sync for the youngest Pradesh, they snapped his name with more threat than he thought possible before he waved them off to catch up with his little ball of starlight and see how long it took her strip Bickslow. He had money on the two starting the mating process at the guild. Vander knew Lucy better than most of his brothers and he knew she would want to see her guildmates before she locked herself away with the blunette Seith Mage. And he also happened to know she was having increasing difficulties keeping her hands off the towering tanned Boscan piece of sexual prowess so he felt like the odds were in his favor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~There will FINALLY be mating in the next chappie but I want to work a little on Dragon Incidents for a little celebratory year anniversary blurb. That story is my baby and now there are babies to write ^.^ It's also way easier to go from Steps to Incidents when one of them isn't dire and serious.
> 
> BUT ARE YOU PUMPED THEY ARE BACK HOME? I know I am. I'm so excited to finally bring in more Fairy Tail into the mix.~


	21. Step Twenty-One: A Lesson from the Bottom

Step 21: A Lesson from the Bottom

Lucy was struggling with her inner dragon as she took careful steps beside her mate, the size of his hands dwarfing hers as they swung between their bodies in sync with their adjusted gates for each other. She tried to focus on matching strides with him but his legs were just too long and her body was just not having it. You know what it was having? A heat stroke from the way her blood was pumping and thrumming through her entire body. It was electric wildfire that sparked anywhere his tanned skin touched hers. Not a problem since they were home right? Wrong. They were walking their way to the guild hall surrounded by the rest Raijinshuu and the two youngest Pradesh brothers which meant she needed to get a grip on her raging libido. Ironically, she attempted to do so in the form of actually tightening the grip she had on his hand to pull a pained wince from her happy-go-fuck-me mate. Upon taking the expression in, she gave a jagged sort of apologetic smile before averting her eyes anywhere except Bickslow's face. Her internal monologue had lapsed back to the night in the hotel on the mountain which was effective in starting the neverending trail of commandments she needed to follow until they were somewhere that wasn't going to get them arrested for public indecency. No sex, no fucking him senseless and no riding him into oblivion. She was determined to make it to a bed before opening her particular can of dragons. Shaking the thought from her head to earn sideways looks from the company she had forced into the background of her awareness, Lucy tried to focus on the faces of her teammates she hadn't seen in far too long.

Knowing her better than to let the odd behavior go, Bickslow ran the pad of his thumb over the sensitized skin of her wrist to pull a keening moan from her lips that sounded like she was on the cusp of some emotion heavier than he would have liked to hear so close to their destination. Bending down to whisper in her ear as privately as they could get with Cristoff's exceptional hearing and Vander's attention focused solely on the couple to make sure he didn't miss a second of the show, he tried to keep it light for her benefit. He was warned on multiple fronts about how insane his woman was for not just holding up somewhere and riding him out until she felt better. He might have preferred it that way and told both Draco and Cristoff that but he wasn't in control of their particular rodeo and he happened to want the pretty lady who was in charge to still tolerate him which meant reunions came before the good stuff. "You okay, babe? Looking a little-"

"Horny? Feral? Desperate? Cause I feel like it." Her haughty words cut his off to earn a round of poorly covered laughter from the mages walking a few steps ahead of them. Lucy immediately regretted the way she was acting. It wasn't his fault she was crawling out of her own skin. It wasn't anyone's fault.

Unperturbed by the outburst, Bickslow just let a sly smile tease the corner of his lips as warm breezes of mid-Summer filtered through his hair and raised the mood. "I was going to say under the weather but I like your answer better. You have a certain je ne sais quoi…" pausing as if in thought about just the right words to say before tugging on her hand pulling her against his side whether she wanted to or not, "...a gift for the spoken language that just gets me going." By the time he finished, he was blinking at her with false cherubic energy right in front of her face.

While she was laughing on the inside, the playful antics of her mate were making things exponentially more difficult. "You," her voice tight through her jaw with how hard she had to clench her teeth from staying in check, "are not helping me right now. Is there any way for you to tone this down a little?" Her hand gesturing from the top of his head to the toes of his boots.

While her mate was busy holding his stomach from cackling at her expense, Vander decided to helpfully chime in from where he was trying to get Evergreen to take her glasses off of her own free will just to see if he could get her pissed enough. "There's no toning down or taming a Pradesh, my sweet, you'll just have to deal with his face the way it is."

Her groan was long and loud as a response because Bickslow's face was the problem. Any amount of lingering stare was too long with the way her arousal was building without any outside stimulation aside from her Seith's presence beside her. He would be delighted to know the effect he had on her without having to try and usually, she would be all about it in return but they were in sight of the guild doors. Fifty steps and closing in on a whole lot of crazy wrapped in good intentions with rough handling exclusivity. As if her own uncontrollable sex drive wasn't enough of a challenge for the fledgling dragon, the excitement of seeing her friends, her family, again was starting to make her fingers tremble. That much closer to strawberry milkshakes, drunken shenanigans and hugs. So many hugs.

Cristoff did his best to try and soothe as much of the tension from her body as he could without directly touching her with his magic to keep her centered and Vander immediately took to giving his blunette brother sound advice on the pleasures of being a sub to give her thirty solid seconds of as much peace she was going to get before hell was going to break loose in the guild and surrounding areas. She was eternally grateful to both men and what they did for her considering the alternate wasn't pretty in the slightest. Amazed with how quickly they had all become staples in her life, the blond bombshell of nerves felt some of the tangled emotion ease with the comfort the thought brought her. Cristoff and Vander both had become these sturdy pillars of stability and security in her life. They also made a pretty good run at co-piloting the angel/devil dynamic that kept her cheeks nice and sore from all the good times they brought with.

It's a good thing she really used her time wisely because it was all the prep time she was given before Natsu, having heard the foreign commotion outside and smelled the achingly familiar scent of his best friend, burst through the front doors without a care in the world for the hinges he ripped out, barrelled right through Evergreen and Freed, brushed passed Vander just as he managed to take a half-step back out of the line of fire before knocking Bickslow completely out of the way and didn't even register Cristoff's existence due to his smart position out of the way of the Fire Slayer's one-way mission to Lucy. The grip he had on her shoulders kept the two of them still in spite of all the forward motion he produced as he yelled his private greetings for anyone who happened to be outside to hear it. "LUCE! I knew you'd be back today! I already told everyone about your," his eyes darting to either side suspiciously to have Lucy herself take check for someone even though she had no idea what they were keeping a secret and from who, "'condition' so if anyone says anything, I'll just fight 'em 'til they shut up about it. Vampire or no, you're still my partner." The pride in his voice had Lucy brought back to the reality of now and if he hadn't pulled her into a tight hug, he would have seen the way her face pulled and beamed into a look of pure contentment before jerking her back with a skeptical look in his eye and an uncanny ability to make the blonde feel like nothing was that bad if he was here. "You're still my partner right? They didn't brainwash you, did they?" Completely uncaring of anyone around him, he cursed the nomadic bands of Joyan vampires from across the continent. "Those blood-sucking bastards…" Lucy's face was wide with confused amusement at his manhandling and unloading of three months of emotions without her there as a keeper. His quickly morphed into unwavering support as his thumb pointed into his own puffed chest. "Don't worry, Luce. I'll get you back to being you again. I've been doing research and there's a rumor about a cure in Sin that sounds super weird but we only need a couple of angel feathers and a-"

Having heard enough cackling from her unhelpfully still and silent team, Lucy cut off her best friends little ranting moment with a swift but sure, "Natsu, I'm not a vampire," only to be met with an even more doubtful look from the pinkette to leave them in a western style stand off of narrowed eyes and twitchy trigger fingers.

Without warning, his hands abandoned their post on her shoulders in favor of wrapping them around her jaw and jamming his thumbs between her lips to pull them up and out in order to get a better look at her fanged teeth. Not appreciating the abrupt intrusion inside her mouth, Lucy bit down into the bone of his finger on impulse. With a snap of his wrist to remove his hands from the death traps she called teeth, he stepped away from her body altogether in a panic. Concerned only with the fact that she had succeeded in getting her handsy partner out of the orifices of her body, she wiped the spit covering her face from her cheek with a shutter wracking her shoulders. She half hissed at the Fire Slayer. "Your fingers never belong in my mouth. Never. Do you hear me, Natsu?"

Interested only in the 'bite' mark on his finger, his eyes went wide with panic as he clutched the barely bleeding finger and shoved it back in her face. "YOU BIT ME!? I'M BITTEN! I'M GONNA DIE AND COME BACK NOW! HOW COULD YOU, LUCE?"

She raised her hands to try and ease his worry since she wasn't a vampire and neither was he, but he just dropped everything and sprinted away with his sights set on his little cabin away from the guild and the group of stunned mages. Even Vander was silent after a scene like that. It was because he was laughing so hard his lungs had run out of air but it was quiet nonetheless.

Out of silence, Freed's steady voice sounded even as he fixed the already perfect collar of his coat from Natsu's tunnel vision. "I give the imbecile an hour before he comes back convinced he's a child of the night."

"Not even," Bickslow's face was drawn in consideration, finger tapping his chin as he tried to imagine how the storyline would play out, "he'll be back when he realizes he just left two dragon slayers behind without trying to throw a single punch."

Evergreen happened to want to actually see their guild and said as much as she crossed the short distance to the door to disappear behind it. Freed turned back towards the Seith without acknowledging their female teammate. The green-haired Rune Mage loved a good mystery and this was like his own little social experiment. "Who do you think he'll try his luck with first? The unknown Lunar Slayer or our own Celestial Slayer."

Both Vander and Bickslow answered in time with the other because to them, the answer had no other options. "Starshine." "Lucy, without a doubt."

Having just had her gums molested and crazed fanatic yelling in her face, the compact woman shut everyone up with a single sharp look before Cristoff came to her side and rubbed the back of her arm affectionately. She accepted the touch happily since it was doing wonders to keep the gnashing and gnawing of her dragon at bay now that her one and only explosive distraction had abandoned her. His voice was low enough that only she and he could hear his carefully chosen words. "Does...he have a mate?"

Narrowing her eyes up at the Lunar Slayer with a quizzical brow, she asked for clarification on just what he was asking because there was no way he was asking her what she thought he was asking her. "He being...Natsu?" His chin dipped as the affirmative action to show that he was in fact asking about the level of availability her destructive idiot best friend and she had to take a moment to herself to regather the functionality of her brain cells because this was definitely those tricky fate sisters keeping up hilarious appearances. "Uh, yeah, he's stupidly single. Seemingly forever stupidly single but I mean, yes. Why?"

The rest of the party was still preoccupied with debating who Natsu would want to fight first and the Rune Mage had brought up a valid point at just the right time to have Lucy's eyes bugging. "You don't think size will have a factor in the final moments?" The fiery male tended to pick the biggest and most powerful enemies for the sheer challenge of it and Cristoff was a large, unknown entity. It was sure to catch the pinkette's attention.

Once again sent into a thought spiral with the new points added to the subject for consideration, Bickslow started to maybe waver on his initial decision for a split second. "I see what you're saying, I really do, but I just can't get the picture of Miss Dragon America telling the timebomb she's a slayer and him just igniting like a lamppost right then and there. An on fire lamppost with serious issues. S'kind of a dream of mine now that I say it out loud."

The Shadowquip had popped into the guild and back out in time to hear his brother's words, his ruggedly handsome face twisted up in delight at all the beautiful prospects for spending his time while he was here in Magnolia if the hall of babes was any indication. "I don't even know the guy and I'm betting on firecracker taking a shot at our starlet. No competition, she'll kick his ass but it'll be a great warm-up before the big game." All signs pointing to Vander meaning their mating as the big game mentioned including his own immature and accurate gestures.

Choking on her laughter at the casually offered boasts and inappropriate hip thrusts, Lucy thanked them all in the form of warm smiles before bracing herself to actually put one foot in front of the other and go inside even though she was pretty sure the crotch of her panties was soaked and getting uncomfortable.

She regretted it as much as she reveled in the tangled mash of joyful greetings, whooping hollars at their return and the barrage of questions coming from every corner of the hall at breakneck speeds, all directed at the doe-eyed blonde at the helm of the ship. Blinking the initial overwhelming flight impulse from her brain, she tried her best to answer the questions that came at her one at time while Mira dragged her over to a seat, somehow managing to welcome the rest of the gang in with a single wave of her hand. It was like Lucy was the keynote speaker and it was time for Q and A except she hadn't prepared for it and the whole crowd consisted of rabid raccoons and she was wearing garbage chic.

Thankfully, her redheaded knight in shining armor, literally, put a stop to the madness with a single chop of her sword to still everyone except Vander, who was busy making come hither eyes at Cana. Stepping through the crowd to stand in front of Lucy, the shine of Erza's armor was blindingly polished to perfection enough to have her cringe and turn away but it wasn't a problem for much longer. Her cheek was smashed to the metal in a typical greeting from the Requip Mage to take care of her own temporary blindness. "Welcome home, Lucy."

And welcomed she certainly felt because this was home; wherever these people, her family, happened to be, that would be home.

Lucy had managed to get through fifteen minutes of focusing on only the questions of her guildmates before someone finally asked about where Laxus had gotten to. Before Vander could get anything out of his smug lips as a reply, Lucy answered with a simple 'you know how he gets after a mission' because they all actually did know how he got and it usually meant he kept to himself for a day or two before coming into the guild. Of course that was before he was technically Master and undeniably gay. While the oldest Strauss had only asked out of worry for her childhood friend, it started raising questions in the rest of the members of their guild that the Celestial Mage had no answers for.

With intent to help his quickly sinking mate, Bickslow had gotten pulled away by Cana, Lisanna and Levy in the process as a divide and conquer plan set in motion by the mastermind, Mira herself in the hopes that they would get the scoop on their red hot romance. The brunette Card Mage had shoved him somewhere close to a stool at the bar while Lisanna and Levy flanked either side of his towering frame to pelt him with questions he had to answer in rapid fire succession or Cana poked him in the center of his back with a one of the metal skewers meant to hold fruit at the top of those fruity drinks he occasionally dabbled in.

First question came from Levy. "So you and Lu are official?"

"Yes." Without a doubt or hope of ever changing.

Next came from Lisanna. "And you don't hate each other?"

"No?" Bickslow had no idea where that would have even came from since they were about as cordial as the rest of the guild.

One obvious one from Cana. "What's it like for the two of you in the sack?"

It might have hurt his pride a little to have to actually say it out loud but it was the truth and he needed to own it. "I wouldn't really know but I'm sure it'll be soul-changing." He also happened to like wordplay and since none of them had been informed about Lucy's dragonhood, it was his own private joke.

Cana called bullshit before stabbing him in back with her weapon of choice to pull a hiss from Bickslow before he reached back and took it from her. She blew him a kiss and grabbed another skewer because Cana did not believe him for a second.

Another question from Levy grabbed his attention and then it turned threatening to force him to swallow the building humor in his chest at the whole scenario as she stood with defiance in her eyes and her hands on her hips. "And you haven't been screwing around, right? I'll kill you, you know-"

"Holy shit, Lev, no. I love her." It was one of those moments where his brain knew it and he knew it but he hadn't really tested it out and now that it was out there, it just made him want to nestle into the sentiment.

While Levy and Lisanna melted into bubbles of gooey fangirl from the confession, Cana kept her cool and her grip on her sharp weapon. She watched with delight as his eyes followed the innocent swing of it back and forth. "Is that why she seems so...different." The words spoken carefully in the hopes that she could get him to spill something juicy. There was drama afoot and she liked to be elbow deep in it.

The smile that split his lips was all shiny pride as his eyes found his mates head of golden hair from across the hall, catching her mid-laugh at something Macao and Romeo were arguing over, was enough to have the Card Mage lower her threatening pose and just listen. "I'm sure I'll catch all sorts of hell for letting the cat out of the bag but I suppose you could blame me for her taking on a dragon soul."

"A what?" Not the type of drama she was expecting. Cana had more sibling rivalry, walking in on the other in the middle of sexy times with Lucy, stuff in her mind.

"Dragon soul," his words far too casual and flippant for the drunkard's liking but it was hard to argue with a man so obviously and hopelessly in love, "from Draco."

Blinking through some more vibrant thoughts of her own, Cana kicked at both her accomplices to see if they would be any help at all in these desperate times. The two remained lost to their own little marshmallow world of love and heart-shaped chocolates. "So you're telling me," honestly, Cana was trying to not freak out at the information she was sorting through and really could use a friend or a drink at this point, "my best little blonde wingman is not only off the market but a Dragon Slayer? Is that what you're telling me?"

He gave a shrug before dragging his gaze away from Lucy to meet the searching eyes of the brunette trying not to jump to conclusions and doing a bad job at it, his arms crossed over his chest as he leaned back against the bar to really get comfortable and enjoy the view he had of the whole guild hall. "I'm gonna marry that woman."

Nodding her head along as if he were a mental patient in the psych ward and she just learned she herself was a patient, she reached behind the bar, grabbed the closest liquor bottle she could get a hold off where Mira kept the good stuff and took a few deep drinks. Cana was sure she was about to die and this was all some great big fever dream before Fiore's top ten eligible bachelors would descend from above and escort her to hell wearing nothing but an array of stripper costumes. Bickslow, international man of chasing tail and infamous for the prowess of his tongue, was ready to be someone's husband. On top of that, the wifey he was tying himself to was none other than miss romantic, out of everyone's league herself. Not exactly his type. She guessed it kind of made sense now that it was out in the open like that. Only Lucy could tame the untamable and come out on top. A sort of opposites attract thing maybe. "So since hell's freezing over and flying pigs are squealing in the clouds, you gonna tell me Laxus met a girl and settled down too? Everyone just up and got hitched?"

"No." He left just enough of a pause to have her let out a breath of relief before tacking on for shits and giggles. "He met my brother and they're probably two rounds into destroying his house by now." No one knew Laxus like Bickslow did and since Kaleb was always a wildcard, the Seith Mage would bet money on at least a little structural damage between the two of them and their appetites.

Knowing when to make an entrance, Vander popped in on the other side of the brunette, his arm already slinking behind her back as her eyes met his with a flash of hunger to add to what was quickly growing to be his favorite topic of conversation; White Lightning. "I bet thunder boy is going crazy just trying to get Kaleb underneath him. Did you see the way he was heaving when we left? The wrestling match with his dragon ended and the dragon won. An angry dragon who prefers only the finest Boscan ass available to attest to the lizards superb taste in men. I myself happen to also be available, Boscan and incredibly fine as well." He gave her a wink and Bickslow barely kept his eyes in his head from how hard he rolled them at the cheesy moves he was dusting off. "I'm Vander Pradesh."

Because Bickslow knew better than to stick around for that particular coming together of minds, he made for his mate, feeling no remorse about dancing around conversations with his guildmates to get there sooner rather than later. It was starting to get late and if the passed three nights were any indication, he needed to get her away from other people before she could soak in any extra star-power and set the mood for some kind of way that wasn't appropriate anywhere in the vicinity of people. He held a new appreciation for Lucy and her unshakeable resolve after having a chit-chat with the Joyan God of War that eerily reminded him of the same fatherly chat he had with Draco. And Laxus, now that he thought about it. Also Loke had a similar chat with him about virtues and vices. The list of powerful dudes in his mates back pocket were getting longer by the day and now included a god as well as a handful of dragons and a few kings. Good thing he was such a confident guy or he might have been intimidated by it.

Taking in a deep inhale from where Lucy had sat between Erza and Mira to pick out the unique scent of cedarwood and lust, she reached a hand out behind her without taking her eyes from Gray's to interrupt the flow of her stories. His fingers traced over her palm to put a smile on her lips as she leaned back against his legs as a backrest while she finished. "...and I'm telling you, the manager of the spring kicked us out so fast, you'd have thought we poisoned the pool."

"Which wasn't even the worst of it. The hotel manager kicked us out of our rooms right after to pretty much ban us from the little hut town forever." Bickslow's voice was rumbling and music to her ears but the instant he braced his hands on her shoulders was like her carefully built wall to keep the dragon out was made of glass with how easily it crumbled to pieces thanks to the unfightable gut reaction from the connection after suppressing her baser nature for this long; pain. Lucy had hit the limit of her own rope and the dragon wasn't pulling any stops until she gave in.

The sounds of the guild started pulsing too loud through her skull as her ears picked out every individual sound and amplified them each too much for her to take. It made the heavy saturation of her swimming vision blur and sharpen, focusing back and forth between the cheerful faces of her friends and the empty chairs in the far back of the guild to make her dizzy and lightheaded. Her body was rioting from not getting what it wanted for too long. The visual and audio psych trip wasn't even the worst part; the worst part was the conglomerate of smells all swirling and mixing in the hall. In a last ditch effort to try and not throw up all over everything, she focused on the wholly masculine scent of her mate until filled her to the point he was all she could focus on.

Gray had noticed the way she had started to slink away from the table and further into the crook of Bickslow's legs, her nostrils flaring and her jaw tensing in pulses. Concern shined his words as they left his mouth while Lucy sank further into her senses and into her mate and away from reality. "Lu? You okay?"

Instead of Lucy or even her mate answering, Cristoff had just enough time to explain that she needed to get the fuck out of there or who knew what she'd level in order to get to Bickslow. She gave Anhur a run for his money and that was when she wasn't fueled by hot burning desire. It was Vander's job to get them out of the guild hall before she did something anyone else would consider 'bad' but anyone else wasn't judging the actions of his favorite spitfire blonde. He and all his male model glory decided to wait until she flipped around and ripped the button completely from his jeans to smack Gray right in the center of his forehead and no doubt ruined the zipper beyond repair before finally taking the two young lovers to Bickslow's house where they didn't have to worry about anything except each other. It wasn't any first-class delivery by Vander to the middle of the Seith's foyer and honestly felt like half a shove through the shadows but Lucy could have cared less how she got to the beautiful hand-crafted home as long as Bickslow was with her. Hell, she was about to walk herself right through her own gate to get to a bed if Vander hadn't express-delivered them here. The dragon in control wanted to mate and be mated. It wanted to feel Bickslow writhe underneath her, sink her teeth into him and ride him until she and her dragon were satisfied. That was evident by the way she was stripping him without care of actually taking his clothes off in a way that would make them salvageable in the least. Lucy was relentless and she knew exactly what she was doing but Bickslow wasn't going to just let her have her way. Not at first anyway. He'd let her build up a bit.

Taking her wrists in both of his hands to still them before those talons of hers tore something a little more precious to him than his shirt and pants, Lucy barred her teeth up at him in warning but her eyes were glassed over and hazy, blind from the urge to get on top of him and claim him. He wouldn't get very many opportunities to catch her off-guard so taking this momentary gift for his own, he threw her right over his bare shoulder to earn honest to god growls from his feisty dragon, pinned her legs against his chest in a swift move to keep her there and started carrying her up the steps because dammit, they were going to make it to a bed. For every attempt to free herself from his unrelenting hold, Bickslow gave her ass a smack. The sound was sweet music to his ears. With every crack against the tensed muscle, her arousal grew hotter and higher until her wildfire swallowed itself and churned into an inferno tearing her up right under the surface of her skin. Bickslow had taken to telling her all the different ways he could bind her up and tie her down just to see how much he could get her riled up before he got her right where he wanted. The images alone had her dissolved into a mess of gruff purring and snapping jaws all at once to pull husky chuckles from her captor. "Don't worry, starlight, I'll make you feel like you're freefallin' off cloud nine."

Like the double-edged sword her new magic was, the reaction from the woman inside her was instant and molten but the dragon was a jumble of rage at being handled so casually, pride at having such a strong, capable mate but the most vital bit she was currently enduring was the voracious appetite eating her away from the inside. He was a buffet of delicious sights and sounds Lucy was desperate to taste.

It was a struggle but Lucy managed to keep herself contained until they stepped foot into his bedroom, then all hell broke loose for the unsuspecting Seith. In a flurry of twisting motions that had Bickslow drooling with how flexible his mate really was, the blonde had managed to swing all her weight backward, launching the pair stumbling forward toward the only real goal the two sex-starved mages had; the victory of finding a bed. The Seith was only worried about dropping Lucy at this point and wasn't even paying attention to the way her arms and legs shifted enough to give her the leverage she needed to push him into the mattress while landing unscathed just out of reach, all the feline grace of a true predator that caught its prey. Her clothes were falling away from her body where she split the fabric of her clothes to leave her standing in the middle of his bedroom in a simple red thong and matching bra, the warmth of the sunset's light bathing her in fire to steal away his breath right from his lungs. Having spent the majority of her time with all her heightened senses on him any chance she could get without even the hopes of being able to strip and explore as she wanted, the minxy blonde could just soak in the way he looked all sprawled and vulnerable for her. Her mouth started watering just at the sheer magnetic attraction they had. But even sprawled across the pristine white of his downy comforter at the mercy of a dragon, the tanned man and all his splayed limbs held the same air of mischief that followed behind him everywhere. Mischief that took physical presence in the form of his usual crooked, sinfully handsome smile that engulfed the brightness in his mesmerizing eyes to give him a devious glint that only served to get her more excited. His hands easily took care of the final piece of clothing keeping him from being totally naked before kicking the briefs away and laying back. "Any chance of me getting out of this in one piece?"

The far too casual way he asked it pulled at her heart the same way it pulled a fanged grin on her lips like everything aside from her wasn't as important including his words. She liked the way he couldn't take his eyes off her prowling form and it made her feel more powerful, more alluring, to know someone like this insane piece of Boscan mana-perfection was so thoroughly entranced by her. It took her back for just a split moment in time. Back to the guild after the Raijinshuu came back from their first mission without Laxus. She was sitting at her usual table with her team arguing over the next job they should take when just the barest flash of a look caught the two mages, Bickslow's eyes flashing faintly green from behind his visor barely enough for her to register his magic and her heart stopped for that moment in time. At the time, she was young and uncomfortable with her own attraction to a man older than her that tried to take over Magnolia and successfully took over her body. It wasn't so much his magic or the mage himself that made her feel that way but her own doubtful belief that someone with that kind of confidence and power would be interested. He was half a decade older, practically S-Class and a known lady-killer with a reputation for leaving broken but incredibly satisfied hearts in the hours of the morning. Just as fast as they connected across the hall, his tongue fell out of his mouth after letting out a vulgar remark about the tears in Evergreen's dress and that was it; the moment was gone and over with. Did that mean she was over it? Not in the least. Somewhere in her subconscious, she held onto that fleeting connection, nurturing it by getting closer to Laxus when he came back to the guild and training with his team, getting to know them. Bickslow became her older brother's best friend instead of the perv from the guild and he made her feel like she was 16 at her coming out party, all butterflies in her stomach and hopeful doe-eyes, but that wasn't all he made her feel; he made her feel lighter with laughter and easy conversation, helped her learn the limits of her body and push past them without any pressure. He made her feel like she wasn't 'the baby Dreyar' of Fairy Tail. And now here they were in his bedroom, his gloriously nude body on display, every delectable inch of his tanned skin all laid out over the drool-worthy definition of his abs, the cut of his hips and the broad width of his shoulders, and she had only one thing on her mind; sinking her teeth into the bronze god before her. Her fingers flexed and tensed at her sides as she stalked closer, each motion fluid and predatory to pull a moan from her sex on legs Boscan with the way her steps shook her thighs.

Bickslow wasn't too hard to please in his youth. Set of tits? Awesome. Nice ass? Bonus for him. Willing participant? What a coincidence, so was he. But Lucy? Lucy was the pinnacle and always had been from the moment he saw her. It started as an unhealthy attraction to a young girl in a cheerleader costume with the words 'jail' and 'bait' written in red across her pretty innocent face and grew into an honest to god crush through the years the longer he got to be around the embodiment of Fairy Tail and the life she brought to people and places she touched. He convinced himself nothing would ever happen between them as long as she had protecto-dadbro Laxus looming over her shoulder and the sheer fact that Lucy was without a doubt way out of his league. And now here he was watching the sexiest woman on the planet slink her fine ass straight to his waiting arms. Her wandering hands snapping the silky red material keeping her chest contained to have the peaks of her rosy buds harden from the sudden exposure and slicing the thin waistband of her thong and he had the passing realization that if heaven was real, he was smack in the center of it right now. His hands reached out to take in her curves and the hard muscles that sheathe them to memory, greedy hands already mapping the newest scars from her fight with Anhur when she gave scolding clicks of her tongue, smile turned darker to have his own arousal light a fire deep in his abdomen at what that meant for him.

"Not so fast, Bixy-babe." The back of her hand was trailing down the taut muscle covering his torso to earn a shudder from her mate as she soaked in the fevered heat radiating from his skin. "I'm in control now," her voice sin incarnate as she crawled over his lap to force him to back away from the edge of the bed towards the headboard, her dragon impatient and starving for the taste of his body, "and I plan on using you up until I see exactly what makes you come undone." She was thankful she had let the girls at the temple braid her hair back out of her face or who knows what would have happened to it for getting in the way.

Back pressed painfully into the shelves of his bed frame, all he felt was the keen sting of his own need for release with how badly he needed to feel her. If he wasn't so dazed from the effects of his unbelievably sexy woman, he might have tried to sound so desperate. "Oh kitten, one touch is all it'll take." Because he was not kidding. The pain throbbing through his member had become unbearable and with the way she kept the moist heat of her core hovering just out of reach of where he wanted her most, he was barely holding himself back from completely ruining their sad game of cat and mouse on his side only. His mate was near sweltering when she got minxy and apparently, mistress minx was the only setting she had when it came to being exposed to his naked body.

One dainty hand wrapped around his wrist above their heads, her voice distracting and sultry as her other hand delicately brought the other arm above his head while their eyes stayed locked together, the concentric circles trapped in the dangerous slits of her eyes. "Just one? My, my, I thought you were a professional, darling." While he was answering with his own breathless and utterly half-hearted comeback, she had pulled a pair of Virgo's cuffs, the leather padded ones tested against the strength of a dragon slayer, and strung her mate up without him knowing since he was distracted by the way the gentle grind of her wet core over his stomach was driving him mad. Enough to have him reach out for her again and pull against the restraints with a mirthful look on his flushed face as he realized just how irrevocably caught he was. Her position straddled over his body, the bounce of her chest in time with her ragged motions, was a place he hadn't been in a very long time. She hadn't even so much as grazed his cock and felt like he was ready to have the fragile levy of his male pride break loose. Premature wasn't how he wanted to come into the sexual aspect of their relationship. Just as he thought he was about to not give two shits about his pride and give in himself, her teasing touches ceased and she stilled her grinding with no explanation.

Bickslow was trying to stay light but the height she had built him to just left him breathless and heaving. "So this is how it's gonna be? You goin' full Mistress Magdala and me playing helpless plaything," his eyes were glazed over from the overwhelming heat building between them, "cause I could get used to this." While that was true, Bickslow wasn't about to let her win that easily. He had a firm belief in the 'a tease for a tease' type of justice but he needed to play this smart or his sexy and smokey minx would turn feral. He spent enough time around dragon slayers to know he wasn't ready for that just yet. Or maybe he was, it didn't really matter either way as long as she stayed naked.

"Suddenly so docile," the questioning in her voice stemmed from the doubt that he would just roll over for her. He had this absolutely inexplicable ability to get her to surrender to him without any great shows of strength or dominance. A coquette brow raised as she leaned forward to draw his attention to how hard she was pressing the hardened peaks of her nipples into his chest, tracing her tongue over the shell of his ear. "Suddenly such a good boy."

Another pained groan left his throat because praise coming from her lips was better than every wet dream he's ever had as his hips thrust upwards into her body to knock her off balance. Thanks to the way she was straddling him, it gave him just enough time to twist his body around to put him on top with her caged in under his body. At the same moment, he coerced Papa into the worn leather cuffs to release his own wrists and wrap around the slim wrist of his mate instead, effectively pinning her beneath him and anchoring her to his bed and flip the tables completely. Looking down to take in the wide fanged grin of pleasure on her face, he knew he must have done something right. His fingers absently danced across the thin white lines of scarring from their fateful trip to Joya before he dipped to nibble on the soft skin of her bottom lip.

The woman inside, or the romantic more accurately, was swooning at the display. Ready to submit and give him access to her soul completely but the dragon wanted to bask in the playful nature of her mate. Her dragon hungered for more from him and would do anything to get it from him. Testing the sturdiness of her own handiwork with the cuffs with unnoticeable tugs, Lucy was sure she could at least pull her arms free from where they were attached to solid wood built into the wall at the expense of the shelves since there was no way to get the damn cuffs off her wrists without breaking them and with the way she could feel her core pulse with need, it was a small price to pay if it meant getting back on top.

The sound of splintering wood was enough to have Bickslow cringe on impulse and in the moment of mourning for his hard work before he could revel at her tiny body and the power in held, Lucy had hooked her leg around his thigh to give her the right position to flip them over in time to the split second she opened a gate below them to bring them somewhere less likely to get splinters. In a disorienting twisting of realities that felt like he was on some serious drugs, Bickslow landed in a heap on the plush cushions of his couch downstairs with Lucy's teeth digging into the juncture of his neck above his collarbone with his cock buried deep in the heavenly heat of her core. All he felt at first was the glorious heat and sharp pain from the physical connections they were sharing but the pain at his neck started tingling with a sensation that grew into wave after wave of her magic as it pulsed through his body. All the while Lucy was chasing the high of her life in the form of the after-effects of taking in Bickslow's soul to her body as she felt it fill her completely with a vivacity and passionate energy that could only come from the blunette half-convinced he was dead with just how good he felt underneath her, her dragon finally getting exactly what it always wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm swamped with life and work and writing but I'm going to try and do at least an update/chapter a week. I can't promise there will be any rhyme or reason to the stories that get updates but I wanted to say THANK YOU SO MUCH for all your kind words and encouragement. It makes my insides get all tingly and bright. So keep it up my loves!! Hugs and love, dearests!!


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